No one is talking about the global carbon budget set by the Paris climate deal in 2015.
That is why the UK’s decision today to boost natgas production at Jackdaw is illegal.
It is unfair and immoral in the most basic sense.
Gemini:
Bridging the Equity Deficit
Under UNFCCC equity frameworks (such as the Climate Equity Reference Project and Tyndall Centre models), post-industrial nations cannot clear their historical and consumption-based carbon debts through domestic territorial cuts alone:
Domestic Mitigation Limit: Modeling indicates that even if the UK achieved extreme annual domestic mitigation rates (~10–13% per year), territorial reductions alone cannot fully offset cumulative historical consumption.
Climate Finance Obligations: Equity frameworks mandate that developed nations fulfill the remainder of their “fair share” via international climate finance—funding mitigation, technological transfers, adaptation, and loss-and-damage mechanisms in developing countries.
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CarrZee bottom line
This is why Burnham’s administration has no moral mandate to boost natgas output.
Because Britain was the First Nation to exploit fossil fuels, what Burnham is doing is lowering the chance of adequate emissions cuts by ALL nations.
To be sure…Burnham is probably expecting some payment from the US for providing Trump cover … it IS true that Jackdaw gas will have much lower emissions than LNG shipped from the US. (The US LNG exports are highly immoral because the USA has overshot its fair share co2 budget, too.)
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Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh did not deliver or justify the Jackdaw gas field decision in Parliament because she was in Aberdeen, Scotland, conducting on-site media interviews and meeting with regional energy sector figures.
Her absence from the House of Commons triggered significant criticism:
- Junior Minister Sent in Her Place: Junior Energy Minister Michael Shanks was dispatched to the Commons chamber to deliver the official statement and take questions from MPs on her behalf.
- Rebuked by the Speaker: Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle delivered a scathing dress-down, accusing Fahnbulleh and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero of an “immense discourtesy” and “shameful” treatment of Parliament. He criticized the government for announcing the policy to media outlets before presenting it to elected representatives, remarking that Shanks had been left as a “patsy” to take the political flak.
- Fahnbulleh’s Response: Speaking from Aberdeen, Fahnbulleh defended her decision to remain in Scotland for the announcement alongside regional stakeholders, stating that she would “make my peace with the Speaker” upon her return to Westminster.
Commons Speaker condemns Jackdaw gas field announcement | The Herald
More to come