Speculation about what would happen next prompted President Trump to post, external On his Truth Social platform:
“People in Aberdeen in Scotland are dancing in the streets as new Prime Minister Andy Burnham says he will completely unleash priceless North Sea oil!”.
He said it would be “a big day” for the UK and that “everyone will appreciate it very much”.
This may be a little premature. How this is all dealt with will hopefully become clear in the coming days and weeks.
There is one thing we can now be sure of – the new Prime Minister will not confirm approval for the controversial Rosebank and Jackdaw fields on his first day on the job.
Operators of those areas were given the go-ahead by the previous Conservative government, but a successful legal challenge is causing those decisions to be reconsidered.
Environmental groups Greenpeace and Uplift argued that ministers had not considered the full impact on climate of burning fossil fuels produced on farms.
Despite there being production facilities at both sites, a lengthy process by the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning (Opred) is still ongoing.
Which is now in its final stages.
Both applications are subject to deliberations which will close in August and acting on them would almost certainly put the government back in court.
