Kemi Badenoch brands key by-election ‘referendum on oil and gas’ as she shifts focus from Makerfield

A key Aberdeen by-election has become a “referendum on oil and gas”, the Conservatives say.

While the Makerfield by-election, in which Andy Burnham is standing, is about “one man’s job and one man’s ego”, the vote in Aberdeen South concerns “thousands of jobs” in the offshore sector, Kemi Badenoch says.

The Tory leader was in the Scottish constituency ahead of the vote on Thursday, which has increasingly focused on energy.

Mrs Badenoch said: “Everyone is talking about the by-election in Makerfield, that is about one man’s job and one man’s ego, but this by-election is about thousands of jobs.

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“I want everyone to know that we will never stop fighting for Aberdeen. We will never stop fighting for this city. We need to bring jobs back. We need to bring hope back.”

Mrs Badenoch was joined by Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay and Aberdeen South candidate Douglas Lumsden to campaign ahead of the vote on Thursday.

Mrs Badenoch has been vocal that her party is pro-drilling in the North Sea and said voting for the Tories would send a message that “we back the oil and gas industry”.

She continued: “What people can see is that we can win here in Aberdeen South. Conservatives can win, but we need even people who don’t normally vote Conservative to support us, so that we can send a message to the Labour Government and to the SNP that we will back the oil and gas industry.

“It’s the only way to send a message by voting for Douglas Lumsden on Thursday June 18. He has lived in Aberdeen all his life, he’s worked in the oil and gas sector, he’s helped to run the council, he’s from here, he cares about the city, as do I.

“I have been championing oil and gas since I became leader of the Conservative Party. I want us to scrap the energy profits levy. Labour has doubled down on it. It’s been going on too long. We need to get Scotland to drilling again. So, let’s do that.”

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said the by-election is a “referendum on oil and gas”.

He said: “Today is Kemi’s third visit of the campaign. She understands that this by-election is a referendum on oil and gas.

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“Only the SNP can beat the Tories and Reform and only the SNP will put Scottish energy jobs first – that’s what’s on the ballot on Thursday.”

The comments came as Wes Streeting, who has indicated he will stand if a Labour leadership contest is called, said that North Sea drilling should not be treated as a “moral catastrophe”.

The Labour leadership hopeful has proposed drilling at Rosebank and Jackdaw, an oil and a gas field, and using the tax receipts to boost green energy.

The former Health Secretary said in a speech in London: “The right approach is not to pretend North Sea oil and gas is the future, or to treat every remaining project as a moral catastrophe.

“It is to manage decline responsibly, apply strict climate tests, and channel the proceeds into projects that will cut bills and cut emissions.

“It is to protect the workers in oil and gas, who’ve seen words like ‘just transition’ translate into jobs for someone else, somewhere else.

“We should be working with the unions on this – not least on making sure that we’re building our clean power future here in Britain, not simply importing it from China.”

Mr Streeting dismissed concerns that more drilling would send the wrong message about Britain’s climate ambitions. In a speech setting out his economic prospectus, he said: “Some will argue that this risks forfeiting our moral leadership on the climate issue. I simply don’t buy that argument.

“The best example we can set is to show the world that net zero is compatible with a pro-growth agenda. “The worst example would be losing support for the Net Zero agenda, handing the country to Nigel Farage, and allowing Reform to destroy the renewables industry.”

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