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Fossil Fuels: Licensing

Asked by Barry GardinerLabourDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled Answered 27 October 2025UIN 82942

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to bring forward primary legislation to ban new oil and gas licences.

Answered by Michael Shanks

The Government has committed to not issue new licences to explore new fields while managing existing fields for the entirety of their lifespan.

On 1 October, the Secretary of State announced legislation to end new onshore oil and gas licensing in England.

Our ‘Building the North Sea’s energy future’ consultation, which closed earlier this year, sought views on how we should implement these commitments. We will respond in due course.

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