Labour MPs Warn Against Overruling Fahnbulleh on Rosebank

Miatta Fahnbulleh is minded to refuse environmental permission for Rosebank, while Labour MPs are warning the leadership against overriding her.

By Career Ahead AI · United Kingdom — AI-assisted, fact-verified against cited sources. Readers should verify key facts.

Fahnbulleh’s aides say she controls the decision

Fahnbulleh’s parliamentary aides circulated a memo to MPs saying she would have the final say on Rosebank. The memo said no decision had been made and described the energy secretary as the only decision maker in the quasi-judicial process. The memo sets out who is responsible for the decision while the proposals are considered. It does not say that permission has been granted or refused.^¹²³⁴

One Labour MP warned: “If Healey pushes through Rosebank, there will be blood.” Another Labour MP described the position Fahnbulleh had been put in as “intolerable.” The first warning names Healey as the person who might push the scheme through; the second objects to the position Fahnbulleh has been placed in. The comments underline the dispute over who should determine Rosebank’s future.^¹²³⁴

The comments underline the dispute over who should determine Rosebank’s future.¹²³⁴

Fahnbulleh distinguishes Rosebank from Jackdaw

Fahnbulleh drew a distinction between the two projects: “One is a gasfield that caters for the domestic market, while the other is an oilfield that is mainly for export,” she said. Rosebank would emit about seven times the carbon of Jackdaw. The distinction she described rests on the projects’ different products and markets, while the emissions comparison shows how their carbon impacts differ.^¹²³⁴

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The government approved Jackdaw last week, and the gasfield is due to begin producing within weeks. It is estimated to add 36m tonnes of carbon emissions. Fahnbulleh said she was satisfied the project would not violate the UK’s climate commitments. She also acknowledged it would not help achieve the government’s main energy target of bringing down bills, saying: “This is not about bills.”^¹²³⁴

Treasury forecasts already include Rosebank revenues

The Treasury had factored Rosebank tax revenues into its calculations, with receipts expected to reach about £500m by the end of this parliament. Treasury officials said the money had been included in Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts since 2019. The projected income is therefore already part of the fiscal forecasts, even as the environmental decision on the field remains unresolved.^¹²⁴

The Office for Budget Responsibility forecast an annual decline of around 14% in oil and gas production if no new fields began producing. Chancellor John Healey supports the Rosebank scheme and told ITV he expected oil and gas revenues to contribute to a new energy wealth fund. Fahnbulleh said the fund would receive £2bn in the budget. The forecast decline and planned fund sit alongside the tax receipts already counted in projections.^¹²³⁴

Climate commitments and political appeals sharpen the dispute

One objection to relying on Rosebank’s projected tax receipts put the issue this way: “You cannot claim global climate leadership while approving new oilfields simply because you’ve already pencilled in the tax receipts.” Areeba Hamid of Greenpeace UK said Rosebank’s tax revenues could leave taxpayers on the hook for decommissioning costs. The criticism links the expected public revenue to potential costs associated with the field’s eventual closure.^¹²⁴

Labour came to power in 2024 with a manifesto pledge not to allow new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea. Scottish Labour leader Michael Marra is making a direct appeal to Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh to approve Rosebank’s plans for production in the North Atlantic. Rosebank is estimated to contain around 300-500 million barrels of oil equivalent. A final decision is expected before the end of this year.^¹²³⁴

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The Office for Budget Responsibility forecast an annual decline of around 14% in oil and gas production if no new fields began producing.

Watch the Energy Secretary's Call

If you work in energy policy, law, or environmental compliance, the Rosebank decision is a live test of how far a minister can go against Treasury pressure. The memo says the energy secretary is the only decision maker, yet the chancellor has already counted about £500m in tax receipts in official forecasts. That tension means the final call, due before year-end, will show whether fiscal projections or climate pledges win. For anyone advising energy firms, the lesson is to track the political balance, not just the legal process.^¹²³⁴

For workers in oil and gas, the distinction between Jackdaw and Rosebank matters. Jackdaw is a domestic gasfield, approved and starting within weeks, while Rosebank is an export oilfield with seven times the carbon. If Rosebank is refused, the OBR's 14% annual production decline without new fields becomes more likely, which could speed up job losses in the North Sea. Plan for a scenario where only domestic gas projects proceed, and ask about decommissioning liabilities if you are in operations or finance.^¹²³⁴