At the time of writing this article, one leading regional supplier is quoting £1.09 for a litre of heating oil. Naturally, this is being mirrored by steep prices on the petrol and diesel forecourt, and underlines the very real cost of living challenge.
Clearly, international events are having an impact. At the moment, it’s not just the Iranian action in the Straits of Hormuz that is affecting international shipping and supplies of petroleum; we now have the Iranian-backed Houthis blocking access through the Red Sea, at the Bab al-Mandeb strait. The Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, is said to be considering military action.
I just hope he also thinks seriously about action on the home front. For weeks, I’ve urged Labour to finally allow new drilling in the North Sea. The alternative is relying ever more on imported oil and gas, and that’s not just bad for our economy, but those imports generate far greater emissions than using our native stocks.
So Burnham’s Starmer-like resistance to allowing new drilling is bad for the environment and the economy. But, above all, with global supplies under serious threat, this is bad for our energy security.
In fact, it was recently reported that Burnham may approve some new drilling – but that he has delayed a decision till after the by-election in Holborn and St Pancras, which follows the resignation of Keir Starmer as an MP.
This is incredible. That would mean the Prime Minister is putting party politics before the national interest – at the worst possible time. In my view, he needs to get more oil and gas flowing urgently.
It’s not just our energy security that requires more serious leadership from our new PM. It was one of the most extraordinary sentences I’ve ever heard at Prime Minister’s Questions when last week Burnham said, in response to a question from our leader Kemi Badenoch, that national security “cannot come at the expense of social security”.
I was sitting just a few seats down from Kemi when Burnham uttered those words. I was gobsmacked. There is no social security without national security.
For me, this statement from the Prime Minister has created a new divide in British politics – between those supporting an ever-larger welfare state and those backing a stronger Armed Forces, in a much more dangerous world. For our part, earlier this month we set out our fully funded plan to increase Defence spending to 3% of GDP. Yes, this includes cuts to welfare, but I’m afraid we cannot go on paying more and more people not to work, or to absent themselves from the workplace because of relatively mild mental health conditions. That is the route to bankruptcy.
This is all about national resilience. A country with its own maximised energy supplies and stronger armed forces can withstand the pressure of global challenges far better than one which keeps spending more and more of its wealth on making people dependent on the state.
So, it’s far from ideal that international events have once again hit us hard on the cost of living front, but we should not pretend that there is nothing we can do about it. The Prime Minister could lead, and take decisions in the national interest to make us stronger, in such challenging times.
With such high fuel costs, it was perhaps helpful that on Saturday I completed my eighth consecutive ‘Ride and Stride’ on a push bike. I pedalled halfway around South Suffolk, visiting many of our most beautiful churches, and enjoying many chats with constituents along the way.
A particular highlight was stopping at East Bergholt, the church I am fundraising for this year, to be given an absolutely wonderful piece of Victoria sponge cake. It was also uplifting to see so many other people out participating this year.
I’ve also been busy getting out and about supporting local pubs. They may be a rather different form of congregation, but like our churches, our village hostelries face profound challenges. Let’s not forget, higher inflation isn’t just bad for the cost of living, it makes running a business tougher too.
So I was delighted to hold my latest ‘Pint and Politics’ chat in The Swan, Lawshall, with an excellent turnout and great questions. I was also pleased to announce that the public responded to my survey by voting the Shoulder of Mutton in Assington as ‘Pub of the Year’. These are difficult times for the country, but they’d be even tougher without the hospitality sector to keep us happy.
Published in the Suffolk Free Press.
