The Weald Action Group is dismayed that the Secretary of State has approved development of the Jackdaw gas field in the North Sea.
The previous consent for Jackdaw was quashed as a result of our legal victory over the Horse Hill oil site in Surrey. The developer submitted a revised Environmental Impact Assessment, and this has now been approved.
Weald Action Group Campaigner Sarah Finch said: “Giving the go ahead to Jackdaw is a mistake and classic case of misdirection. The UK has the oldest and least efficient housing stock in Europe with one in five homes lacking proper insulation. Instead of approving a gas field that will do nothing to cut heating bills this winter or make a meaningful difference to energy security, the UK government should be investing in a systematic and comprehensive home energy efficiency programme”.
Weald Action Group Campaigner Kirsty Clough said: “Governments around the world already plan to produce 92% more gas than is compatible with keeping global average temperature rise below 1.5oC. At home droughts and wildfires have blighted our country this summer. What more evidence do leaders need that the climate crisis is not some distant threat for future administrations to deal with? It is real and it is happening now”.