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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Comment
Simon Jenkins

Sunak’s plan for carbon capture is good news: he shouldn’t muddy it with party politics

Rishi Sunak during a visit to Shell St Fergus gas plant in Peterhead, Scotland, 31 July 2023.
Rishi Sunak during a visit to Shell St Fergus gas plant in Peterhead, Scotland, 31 July 2023. Photograph: WPA/Getty Images

For as long as the United Kingdom needs to use oil and gas, we should be making an effort to capture any resulting CO2 and store it. That clearly makes sense. It also makes sense to produce our own oil and gas, so we are less beholden to exporters (though of course ours, too, would be sold on the international markets).

So far, so good for Rishi Sunak’s twofold announcement today in Scotland. But it would be helpful if he did not muddy these waters by using them to score political points against Labour in the run-up to an election campaign. What we desperately need now, as we confront the climate crisis, is agreement on a way forward. Bringing party politics into it will only hinder progress.

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