Labour’s North Sea Tax Policy Written By Climate Activists
Reeves announced a 3% increase in the top rate of the energy profits levy — a.k.a. the North Sea windfall tax—bringing it to a staggering 78% and stretching its tenure to 2030. On top of that, she’s stripping away the investment allowances. This policy will carve out a £5-7 billion gap in the national accounts as the regime loses £2.2-6.2 billion in annual income, while still bearing the £2-3 billion yearly cost of decommissioning existing projects. Reeves, naturally, is happy to blame the Tories for the black hole in the books, yet conveniently sidesteps the fact that she’s busy digging a fresh one…
Labour’s sheer ignorance in this climate-crusader policy may be linked to their dubious choice of tax advisor, named by City A.M.: Heather Plumpton, a rainforest historian under the employ of the Green Alliance, a group bankrolled by Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, and renewable energy firms. Back in 2022, Plumpton pitched, on behalf of the ideological climate lobby group, a proposal to ramp up North Sea taxes to Norwegian levels (78%), sans the generous investment incentives that make Norway’s steep rates somewhat bearable. Now Labour have taken it on. Guido can’t help but wonder the lefty outcry over ‘Government being bought by corporate interests’ if it were oil companies lobbying to raise taxes on renewable energy sources instead…