Rishi Sunak loses his cool after being quizzed about flying to Scotland

Rishi Sunak was involved in a tense exchange on BBC’s Good Morning Scotland after being quizzed on flying by private plane.

The prime minister was asked about plans to announce funding for a carbon capture and storage project taking place in Aberdeenshire, which is being sold as a project to combat climate change.

Sunak defended flying private to announce the launch of the Acorn carbon capture project, saying that it was “the most efficient use of my time”.

Asked how he would be travelling to Scotland to make the announcement, Mr Sunak told the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland programme in a tetchy interview: “I’ll be flying as I normally would, that is the most efficient use of my time.

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“Actually I think that question brings to life a great debate here. If you or others think that the answer to climate change is getting people to ban everything that they’re doing – to stop people going on holiday – I think that’s absolutely the wrong approach.

“Every Prime Minister before me has also used planes to travel around the United Kingdom because it’s an efficient use of time for the person running the country, so I can keep focusing on delivering for people.

“But if your approach to climate change is to say ‘No one should go on a holiday, no one should take a plane’, I think you are completely and utterly wrong."

He added: “That is absolutely not the approach to tackling climate change. What we are doing is investing in sustainable aviation fuel, as one of the new technologies like carbon capture and storage will help us make the transition.

Alberto Pezzali - WPA Pool/Getty Images

“It’s not about banning flying, it’s about investing in new technologies, like sustainable aviation fuel, that will make flying more sustainable.”

It comes after Sunak confirmed hundreds of new oil and gas licences will be granted in the UK. The prime minister said he is backing the North Sea oil and gas industry to “make Britain more energy independent”.

Sunak said the new licences will cut Britain’s carbon footprint, as domestic production is responsible for just a quarter of the emissions of imported liquified natural gas.

Labour has promised to block new oil and gas developments in Britain if it wins power, saying it would focus instead on investments in renewable sources such as wind and nuclear power.

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