Boris Johnson’s Saudi Arabia trip is an embarrassing and needless quest for oil

Just weeks after Boris Johnson called on the world’s leaders to show "conviction and courage" in slashing global emissions at the UK-hosted Cop26 climate summit, the prime minister finds himself in Saudi Arabia urging Riyadh to help generate a major increase in global oil supplies.

Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine has prompted a rapid desire to end dependence on imports of Russian oil and gas, but even before the invasion, prices of these commodities had already soared, leading to record fuel prices.

Both the war, and a rise in demand have contributed to the record prices, leading to a cost of living crisis in Europe. The UK remains dependent on both oil and gas, and will do so for many years, despite enormous strides in the renewable sector.

While the UK’s dependency on Russian gas for electricity generation and home heating has been a key focus in recent weeks, there has been less coverage of the UK’s dependency on Russian oil.

While between 1 and 4 per cent of all gas burnt in the UK comes from Russia, around 8 per cent of all our oil is Russian, and diesel vehicles are particularly dependent on Russian oil, with 18 per cent of all diesel used in Britain made using Russian oil supplies.

With the prime minister promising to phase out all Russian oil by the end of the year, he is now seeking new sources.

Most of the UK’s oil comes from Norway and the US. Russia is the third biggest source of oil in the UK, while smaller percentages come from a range of other countries including Canada, Nigeria, Algeria and Turkey.

As such, the prime minister is now turning to oil-rich Saudi Arabia in the hope the kingdom can increase production levels enough to help drive down the price of oil on the international market – lowering prices for European consumers, and with anti-Russian sentiment soaring, allowing Saudi Arabia to increase its share of the global oil market.

Johnson is said to "personally" know Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, with Number 10 officials failing to deny this week that the prime minister sends WhatsApp messages to the prince.

But any oil agreement following Johnson’s visit remains a tall order.

The prince has largely been shunned by the West after US intelligence concluded he ordered the murder of US-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

Meanwhile, Saudi concerns about US dealings with Iran on redrawing a new nuclear agreement are also casting shadows over Western interests, particularly as Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen are at war with Yemen’s Saudi-backed government.

The Crown Prince reportedly declined to speak to Joe Biden on a phone call about the global energy crisis.

In what has been interpreted as a further sign that Saudi Arabia is in no mood to negotiate, just last week the kingdom executed 81 men – mostly on charges of terrorism – in the biggest mass execution in the kingdom’s modern history.

Johnson’s trip is not being lauded at home either.

Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, has said Johnson “going cap in hand from dictator to dictator is not an energy strategy”.

And in the House of Commons on Wednesday, deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner said Johnson’s efforts to stop buying oil from Putin meant the prime minister was going "from one dictator to another on a begging mission”.

She added: "The government have had 12 years to end their reliance on foreign oil and invest in homegrown energy to secure our supplies. Their failure has left us all vulnerable, reliant on another murderous dictator to keep the lights on and the pumps open."

Even setting human rights concerns aside, experts have repeatedly stressed the fastest way for the UK to end dependence on foreign fossil fuels is to invest in insulating homes and speeding up the roll-out of electric air source heat pumps.

Instead, Johnson is at pains to maintain our addiction to climate-altering hydrocarbons - even if it means cosying up to regimes which abuse human rights.