Letter: Diminishing oil

THE note by John Swinney (your report, 2 February) failed to mention that he had previously said that “the oil price is forecast to rise to over £127 per barrel”.

Budget Responsibility predicts that UK oil production will fall to some 14 million tons by 2041, down from some 50 million tons in 2016.

At last, some real figures for our independence viability. Our government is explicitly relying on consistent income from a rapidly diminishing oil resource which peters out after a few decades. What replaces it?

EDF has just bought into a Borders wind farm, another loss of income to non-Scottish interests – in this case France.

Joe Darby

Cullicudden

Dingwall