ABERDEEN — The SNP-led Scottish government is set to drop its long-standing opposition to new oil and gas exploration in the North Sea.

Two senior members of the Scottish government — granted anonymity to discuss a strategy not yet ready for publication — told POLITICO the government will revise its energy plans to take a more pro-oil and gas exploration position.

Tests on compatibility with the government’s climate targets will remain, but Scotland will no longer begin from a position of opposition to new oil and gas projects. The move marks a major change in the Scottish government’s energy policy.

The Scottish government — led by the SNP since 2007 — released a draft energy strategy in 2023 which set out its “presumption against” new oil and gas fields in the North Sea.

That draft strategy is “out of date,” one senior Scottish government official said. They said a new strategy, expected by the summer, will not contain this wording. A second person with knowledge of the policy said the new strategy will “reflect the world as it is.”

The shift in policy comes with the U.K. government widely expected to give the go-ahead to the Jackdaw gas field next week.

While the Scottish government has little power over the granting of new licenses for projects such as Jackdaw or the Rosebank oil field — where a decision is expected to come separately and at a later date — it has an important symbolic role, and can apply pressure to the U.K. government to approve licenses. 

SNP politicians at the party’s conference in Aberdeen privately admitted the stance on Jackdaw has hurt the party electorally. 

The party passed a resolution at its conference Friday which stated that the “utilisation of domestic production” of oil and gas is “clearly preferable to importation”. This was seen as a further softening of the position of the SNP — which governed in a quasi-coalition with the anti-exploration Scottish Greens until as recently as 2004.

This resolution, which changes the party’s official policy, will be used as the government writes its new energy strategy, the two people quoted above said.

In the summer, the SNP lost a key parliamentary by-election in Aberdeen to the pro-drilling Conservative Party, where their North Sea messaging was a key focus. “It was bruising ,” the official quoted above said. “But we’d been shifting our position for a while.” 

Speaking in the debate at the party’s conference Friday, the defeated SNP candidate in that by-election said the victorious Conservatives had hung the words ‘presumption against’ around “our necks lie an albatross.”

”We need to put to bed any suggestion that our party, or our government, supports a ‘presumption against’,” Richard Thomson said. 

LONDON — Britain and the European Union will hold their annual leaders summit on Nov. 20 in Brussels.

U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham confirmed the date in a statement to the House of Commons on Monday afternoon.

Brussels and London want to use the meeting to sign off new agreements on agri-food trade, emissions trading, and a youth mobility scheme.

Burnham told the Commons he wanted to secure a deal on the agreements — begun by previous Prime Minister Keir Starmer — and then begin a “calm, clear-eyed, rational look” at even closer relations.

“If we are serious about promoting growth, controlling immigration, upholding our values and security, it is a conversation we must have,” he said.

“Sticking with the status quo is not good enough for Britain. Worse, it would be a major dereliction of duty to turn away.”

He added: “Our immediate priority is securing a successful outcome at the summit, and I believe we should then set up a serious dialogue about the different options for our relationship in the long term.”

The prime minister also said the meeting would present an opportunity to “raise our concerns about Made In Europe” — the EU’s program of protectionism which some countries want to exclude the U.K.

Burnham has previously suggested these future options could include rejoining the single market, customs union, or even the EU wholesale.

Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the opposition Conservative party, criticized the prime minister for focusing on the U.K.’s relationship with the EU.

“His exact words earlier this year were, ‘The last thing we should do right now is rerun those arguments,’” she said.

“And yet, here he is unpicking the deal this country signed with the EU a decade after the referendum. He is not going to get a better deal. The EU are tough negotiators.”

She added: “Just like some people thought all of Britain’s problems would be solved by leaving the EU, some now think all our problems will be will be solved by rejoining. Neither of these are serious positions.”

In a statement issued while Burnham was speaking in Westminster, António Costa, president of European Council, which represents EU member countries, said improving cooperation was “essential.”

He said the three agreements under negotiation could be complemented by additional deals on a defence and security partnership, as well as on migration and law enforcement.

“The European Union and the United Kingdom are like-minded partners, united by common values and shared interests,” he said in a statement,” he said.

“Our security and prosperity are closely intertwined, making a strong partnership between us essential.

“By deepening our cooperation, we can strengthen our ability to address the challenges of our time, strengthen our resilience and promote stability in Europe and beyond.”

Costa and Burnham will be joined by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the Nov. 20 meeting. Negotiations have been taking place since the previous summit in May 2025, which was attended by Starmer.

This year’s summit was intended to take place in July but was postponed following the collapse of Starmer’s administration.

The Trump administration moved Friday to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian diesel as President Donald Trump said Moscow had agreed to release large quantities of the fuel and suggested the U.S. could be a buyer.

The surprise move comes as the Trump administration has struggled to bring the record diesel prices — caused by the ongoing war against Iran as well as Ukrainian attacks against Russian refineries — under control ahead of the midterm elections.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he had just “concluded a highly successful discussion” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in which Putin agreed to supply hundreds of thousands of tons of diesel fuel “to the American and Global Marketplace.”

“Between our TOTAL CONTROL of the Strait of Hormuz, and this great announcement on Russian Energy, Diesel Prices for Americans and, indeed, the World, will be COMING DOWN, IN RECORD NUMBERS, AND FAST!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The Treasury Department said in a post on X that it was “immediately issuing a temporary general license to allow the supply of Russian diesel to the global market.”

Moscow has restricted diesel exports in recent months as Ukraine has accelerated its attacks on Russian refineries, contributing to the global shortage of the fuel. It is unclear how Russia will supply the large quantities of the fuel promised by Trump with a large chunk of its refineries out of commission.

LONDON — Germany wants the U.K. to raise tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles in exchange for protection from Made in Europe rules, according to a person familiar with Berlin’s position.

Friedrich Merz’s government believes the move would show reciprocity on trade and counter accusations from other EU member states that Britain is trying to “cherry pick” the benefits of EU membership, said the person, who was granted anonymity to discuss closed-door talks.

It comes as Prime Minister Andy Burnham met with the German chancellor on his first official visit to the country this week.

Burnham and Merz were due to talk about possibilities for Britain’s future relationship with the EU — after the British prime minister put rejoining the bloc back on the table of U.K. politics for the first time in a decade.

Berlin’s position on EV tariffs is significant as Germany has broadly backed a tolerant policy towards the U.K. on trade matters since Brexit — in contrast to more hard-line positions taken by countries like France.

The EU is in the process of drawing up new Made in Europe rules that would favor European producers over those outside the bloc — in response to trade practices by competitors like China and the United States.

The U.K. is worried that the measures will hit British business — especially automakers — and wants assurances from Brussels that it will get an opt out. If Berlin gets its way, those assurances could be dependent on emulating EU trade policy with regard to Chinese EVs.

Predatory strategy

Germany’s vaunted car industry, arguably the jewel in the country’s economic crown, has faced stiff competition from Chinese imports in recent years.

EU countries have accused China of dumping low-cost, state-subsidized electric vehicles into the European market and in December 2024 imposed countervailing duties as high as 35.3. percent on some manufacturers.

Industry Commissioner Stephane Séjourné accused China of pursuing a deliberate “predatory strategy” with state subsidies to the tune of €10,000 per vehicle.

The U.K.’s Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told POLITICO last month that the government was keeping tariffs “under review, to be frank, more closely than lots of other issues” and that “different parts of our own sector want different things from” the government’s policy.

Hamish Falconer, the U.K.’s minister for European relations, told POLITICO’s Brussels Playbook Podcast this week that he was “surprised” at reports tariffs might be a condition of Made in Europe opt-outs, adding: “That’s not the kind of conversation that I’m having with my European counterparts.”

Going ahead with higher tariffs risks alienating Beijing, which has expressed serious concerns about the policy. It would also raise the price of electric vehicles on the market, potentially making it harder for the government to meet its decarbonization targets.

BRUSSELS — The EU will only conduct further releases of oil and diesel reserves after the International Energy Agency has made it clear such a move would not be damaging to the bloc’s energy security, three diplomats familiar with the matter told POLITICO.

The Group of Seven — which includes Italy, Japan, Germany the U.K., France and the U.S. — agreed on Friday to release 100 million barrels of oil and diesel after U.S. officials threatened to ban diesel exports if they didn’t tap stockpiles.

However, the IEA appeared to confirm Wednesday that that release would draw from stocks pledged under an agreement in March and not include additional supplies. In other words, it would not amount to a new release at all, but would simply fulfil prior promises.

In a meeting Wednesday afternoon, EU officials endorsed the position, pledging to defer any future drawdowns “pending a clearer IEA assessment of market conditions and security-of-supply risks,” said one of the diplomats. Countries need to know “how low we can go,” said another.

While diesel prices are high as a result of airstrikes on energy infrastructure in Russia and the Middle East, some EU countries warned that releasing stocks now could leave them vulnerable in the event of a supply crisis.

There remain enough untapped stocks among IEA members to satisfy the pledge to release 100 million barrels.

Of the 400 million barrels pledged in March, 325 million have been released, with some countries releasing “greater volumes than they initially pledged,” the IEA said in a statement following an emergency ministerial meeting. That leaves around 100 million left that countries can still release under that agreement, it added.

It said the fresh commitment would represent a “completion” of that March agreement. The IEA’s 32 members include wealthy European, North American and East Asian countries.

POLITICO reported earlier Wednesday that France and Germany — which hold some of Europe’s most significant stockpiles — had signalled they would release no or minimal supplies on top of those already pledged.

It remains unclear what share of the releases non-EU members of the IEA will accept, after Japan, another member, ruled out any further releases.

Further details on the breakdown of the G7 release will be discussed at a meeting of the IEA’s governing board next week, the second diplomat said.

BRUSSELS — France and Germany said Wednesday that they will release diesel stocks that were already committed in March as part of the G7 pledge to tap stockpiles of oil products, leaving it uncertain as to whether any new barrels will be released in addition, two diplomats familiar with the matter told POLITICO. 

The comments suggest Europe’s promise to U.S. President Donald Trump last week to release millions of barrels of the transport fuel was less generous than it sounded.

The G7 club of rich countries committed Friday to release a “substantial” amount of diesel in the next 20 days to bring down global prices after senior Trump administration officials threatened to impose an export ban on the fuel if European countries didn’t unlock their reserves.

But in a closed-door meeting of EU energy officials Wednesday, the countries acknowledged that the release wouldn’t include new barrels of diesel but rather barrels already pledged under a wider European commitment to release 100 million barrels, two-thirds of which were refined products, the diplomats said. That deal was brokered by the International Energy Agency in March weeks after the outbreak of the war in Iran. 

The exact quantities Germany and France will release remains unclear, but they will represent a portion of the remainder of the stocks committed in March, the diplomats and a German government spokesperson said.

Of the 2.65 million tons of oil, diesel and jet fuel promised, Germany has so far released only 600,000 tons onto the market. It remains unclear how much France has contributed of its own commitment to release 14.6 million barrels of oil products. However, Paris has indicated privately that it still has 8 million barrels left under the March commitment, which it will contribute under the latest push, two other diplomats told POLITICO.

The countries, which boast some of the largest reserves of refined oil products in Europe, have been criticized by the Trump administration for not contributing the full share committed in March. Germany attributes that to weak demand for the barrels, according to a document seen by POLITICO.

It’s not clear whether countries will ultimately decide to commit additional barrels, with one European official telling POLITICO Monday that the fresh commitment “necessarily implied” a fresh release. France on Wednesday signaled it could release 2 million barrels of diesel on top of the quantities agreed in March — as part of the G7 vow to prioritize releases of the motor fuel over the next 20 days — but stopped short of offering a clear commitment, two diplomats said. An extraordinary meeting of the IEA will take place today, two other people familiar with the matter said.

The move came amid confusion from other member countries over who was committing how much and when, with some Eastern European countries like Bulgaria also expressing concern that blowing through reserves to combat prices would leave them exposed in the event of a supply crisis, the people said.

A spokeswoman for Germany’s economy and energy ministry confirmed on Tuesday that Berlin would be releasing no new barrels.

“The G7 has asked the IEA to monitor a swift and complete implementation of the commitments made for March 2026,” the spokeswoman told POLITICO. “Against this background, and taking into account commitments already fulfilled, the obligations are to be implemented through a coordinated release of 100 million barrels via the IEA.”

She added “as of now, no additional quantities” would be released.

Aude le Gentil contributed to this report.

This article has been updated.

LONDON — The Green Party is reviewing a complaint against its deputy leader following an alleged altercation at a local meeting, two people with knowledge of the procedure have told POLITICO.

The probe into Mothin Ali’s conduct follows a report by Leeds outlet the Exchange of a public dispute between the deputy leader and a member of his local party at a meeting last month.

According to minutes of the Leeds Green Party group meeting, reviewed by POLITICO, Ali “snatched” a phone from an attendee and “threw the phone onto the floor” after the person “attempted to take an image with Mothin in the background.” 

Both were then asked to leave, the Sept. 15 minutes state. The Green Party told the Exchange at the time that it disputed “this incomplete account” of the alleged altercation.

A complaint about Ali was lodged with the Green Party a week later, according to a party official, who was granted anonymity like others in this article to discuss a sensitive matter. 

The deputy leader has not been suspended by the party while the allegations are under review. A Green Party spokesperson said: “We do not comment on internal matters.” Ali declined to comment, instead directing POLITICO to the party press office.

The first party official referenced above told POLITICO any decision on whether or not to suspend Ali is expected to take about five weeks, in part due to the Greens’ Brighton conference — which Ali attended — slowing what is normally a shorter process.

The second person familiar with the process, an ally of Ali, said the deputy leader had been “under a lot of pressure” and that the party had failed to support him in the face of attacks.

Ali — one of two Green Party deputy leaders — said in a statement on X last month that he had “been subjected to a sustained series of allegations, complaints, leaks and personal attacks” since standing to become deputy leader, and argued that some of these had been “explicitly racist and Islamophobic.”

He told the party’s Brighton conference in a speech Saturday that internal disagreement “must never mean tolerating racism, misogyny, homophobia or intimidation inside our own movement.”

The row comes at a sensitive moment for the Green Party, which has been posing a left-wing challenge to Britain’s Labour government under Leader Zack Polanski, but seen some support drift away amid the rise of new Prime Minister Andy Burnham. 

Ali has spent the weekend in Brighton rebutting rumors that he could pose a leadership challenge to Polanski at the party’s next election — not due to take place for another year. 

Speaking to the BBC over the weekend, Ali said that Polanski — who is trying to win a seat in Parliament at the Holborn and St Pancras by-election this week — had his “full support.”