Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt sparks oil and gas row with Brexit deal vow

Jeremy Hunt
Jeremy Hunt

Jeremy Hunt insisted yesterday he is determined to deliver a Brexit that works for the oil and gas sector as he acknowledged the industry’s fears over EU withdrawal.

The foreign secretary said he was confident the North Sea sector had the “resilience” to withstand the economic shock of Brexit.

But he understood the offshore industry’s concerns over the potential for tariffs, the disruption to the supply chain and the impact on foreign workers.

His assurances were last night dismissed by the SNP, who claimed the Conservatives’ “obsession” with Brexit would be a “hammer blow” to the North Sea.

On the eve of a visit to Aberdeen, Mr Hunt said he would fight for a pro-business immigration policy that recognised the needs of the sector.

And he argued that the best way to avoid post Brexit tariffs was for MPs to back Theresa May’s deal, despite signs that it will be rejected once again when the Commons votes next week.

Mr Hunt said: “We are absolutely determined to deliver a pro-business Brexit. The oil and gas industry is absolutely essential to the British economy – 300,000 jobs, one third of which are in Scotland. Aberdeen is central to that.”


>> Keep up to date with the latest news with The P&J newsletter


An industry report has suggested WTO-style tariffs could add £500 million to the sector’s annual EU trade bill. The prospect of more customs red-tape has led to fears that equipment imported from Europe will be delayed.

With EU nationals accounting for 5% of oil and gas workers in the UK, the industry is also anxious to protect its workforce.

On the question of tariffs, Mr Hunt said there would be “clarity” on the issue if Mrs May’s deal is backed by parliament on Tuesday.

He added: “If that passes through then we would be track to have a completely tariff free trading relationship with the rest of Europe going forward.”

Speaking to the Press and Journal on a visit to Glasgow University, the foreign secretary said the UK Government would do “everything we can” to address concerns about equipment shortages.

“But I also do know that the oil and gas industry is totally international and used to importing and using equipment from all over the world,” he said. “So I am very confident in the resilience of that sector to deal with whatever situation we end up in the next few weeks.”

Mr Hunt argued that leaving the single market gave the chance to create a “pro-business immigration policy that fully recognises the needs of the oil and gas sector” and recruited internationally.

Today, the foreign secretary will meet leading industry figures at Aberdeen Harbour.

His visit coincides with HMRC figures showing exports of oil and gas to the EU are up 29% from £6.2 billion to £8 billion.

SNP Economy spokeswoman Kirsty Blackman MP said there was “no sign” Mrs May had considered the needs of the oil and gas sector.

“Westminster is incapable of delivering for Scotland’s oil and gas sector. Their obsession with Brexit would be a hammer blow to the sector and wider economy,” she said. “The north east would be among the regions hit worst by a Tory Brexit.”

Gareth Wynn, of UK Oil and Gas, said the industry was emerging from one the “toughest downturns” in its history and it was critical to support the sector’s hundreds of thousands of jobs.

“The certainty and stability of a deal outcome is in the interests of our industry to help safeguard the value and potential of the UK’s offshore oil and gas industry,” he said.