THE Tories have been branded “reckless” after calling for more oil and gas production in the North Sea to undermine Russia.

Tory MSP Liam Kerr called on the Scottish Government on Tuesday to tear up its climate commitments by expanding oil and gas production to end Europe’s reliance on Russian fossil fuels.

But such a move would risk inflating Scots’ bills while accelerating global warming, the Scottish Greens have said.

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Last month, the UK Government was told by climate experts the best way to lower household energy bills was to stop using fossil fuels.

The Climate Change Committee, which advises the Government on green policy, said increasing oil and gas production within the UK would have virtually no effect on consumer bills.

Kerr was likened to Nigel Farage by the Scottish Greens’ climate spokesperson Mark Ruskell, and accused of wanting to “prop up polluters and plunge households into poverty” by pursuing climate-busting policies.

He added: “The Conservatives are wilfully avoiding the scientific evidence and the fact that volatile gas prices are having a devastating impact on the cost of living.

“Across Europe governments are waking up to the fact that we must end our dependency on oil and gas. Stopping the Nord Link pipeline has been one of the most effective sanctions on Putin, thanks to the German Greens.

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“We know the public want a just transition away from oil and gas.

“Instead, the UK Tory Government is doubling down on the industry that helped Putin accumulate power and influence. It needs to urgently invest in renewables and insulation.”

Ryan Morrison, just transition campaigner with Friends of the Earth Scotland, told The National the drilling for more oil “would lock us into more of the oil and gas that is becoming unaffordable to millions of homes”.

He added: “Experts have made it clear to the UK Government that increasing the supply of oil and gas will take decades to deliver, won't have any real effect on household bills and will worsen climate change.

"Renewable energy is already cheaper than fossil fuels and new oil and gas is diverting time and money away from scaling up our supply of clean, reliable renewable power and ensuring a just transition for workers and communities. 

"Because of the urgency of climate change, every nation on earth should already be seeking to reduce their use of fossil fuels.

“In the UK that means investing in warmer homes and better public transport to improve people’s lives, we must renew and massively upscale these efforts to reduce our reliance on volatile fossil fuels."

Responding to Kerr, Energy Secretary Michael Matheson, said the answer was to “step up the decarbonisation of our energy system”.