Badenoch claims Tories ousting SNP in Aberdeen South by-election would give oil industry 'kiss of life'
The Aberdeen South by-election has become a de facto vote on the future of the North Sea oil and gas sector.
Kemi Badenoch has argued a Scottish Conservative victory in the Aberdeen South by-election could give the North Sea oil and gas industry “the kiss of life”.
The UK Conservative leader will today visit the constituency for the third time during the campaign, ahead of Thursday’s poll - one of two Westminster by-elections taking place in Scotland.
The Conservatives believe they can snatch the seat from the SNP, with the contest being held after former SNP Westminster leader, Stephen Flynn, stood down from the Commons after taking up a seat at Holyrood.
With claims up to 1,000 jobs are being lost in the oil and gas sector every month, Ms Badenoch said a victory for her party, which supports more drilling in the North Sea, would send “a deafening message” to Labour and the SNP over the future of the industry. The SNP also backs drilling in the North Sea if it is compatible with climate targets.
But Mr Flynn has warned voters that 70,000 oil and gas jobs were “destroyed” under the previous UK Conservative government, which also introduced the controversial energy profits levy.
The two-way contest between the SNP and Conservatives has turned into a battle over the future of oil and gas, with both parties boasting about their support for the industry.
Ahead of her visit, Ms Badenoch claimed that Aberdonians tell her “the city is on its knees because Labour and the SNP are killing the oil and gas industry that’s its economic lifeblood”.
She added: “The Conservative Party is proudly pro-drilling because it’s crucial to the North East economy and essential for the nation’s energy security.
“If voters in Aberdeen South choose Douglas Lumsden as their MP on Thursday, it will send a deafening message that the SNP and Labour would ignore at their peril.
“By electing Douglas, who worked in the sector for two decades, voters could give the kiss of life to North Sea oil and gas and help revitalise Aberdeen.”
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay, who will join Ms Badenoch on her campaign visit today, has urged voters to unite behind his party’s candidate and current MSP, Douglas Lumsden, arguing that splitting in the pro-Union vote would result in the SNP winning by default.
But Mr Flynn, now the SNP government economy secretary, has warned voters they “should never Truss a Tory” after Mr Lumsden’s endorsements of former Tory prime minister Liz Truss came to light.
Speaking ahead of campaigning with Aberdeen South by-election candidate Richard Thomson, he said: “The Tories destroyed 70,000 oil and gas jobs, they introduced the hated windfall tax that is costing 1000 jobs a month while the Tory candidate here was a lickspittle for Liz Truss who wrecked the economy.
“People in Aberdeen will never forgive the Tories for what they did to our city and we cannot let them or Farage get their hands on Aberdeen South.”
The Conservatives have claimed the SNP opposes additional drilling in the North Sea, pitting them in the same frame as Labour, which has vowed to end new exploration licences.
But under John Swinney’s leadership, the party has moved away from its more climate-conscious identity under Nicola Sturgeon, instead backing Boris Johnson’s strategy of supporting new licences if they meet climate criteria. But the SNP government has not published a final energy strategy since 2017, repeatedly delaying an up-to-date policy position.
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