Labour have accused the government of favouring oil and gas giants with a “uniquely generous” regime of tax and subsidies, after it emerged that Shell received more than £100m from the UK taxpayer in 2021.
The payment was revealed in a Shell report which showed that the company paid out a total of £17bn in taxes and royalties to governments around the world last year.
In only a handful did state subsidies outweigh charges, and the UK was by far the biggest payer, followed by India on £15m and Germany on £3m.
Labour said that poorly-designed tax breaks had resulted in Shell and BP receiving £700m in government subsidies for oil and gas production between them since 2016.
Shadow climate change minister Kerry McCarthy said that the payments were coming at a time when Conservative leadership frontrunner Liz Truss is insisting that there can be no “handouts” for households struggling with rising energy prices.
She called for energy companies to be made to pay their “fair share”.
“Since 2016, oil and gas giants have been paid huge amounts from the public purse under the uniquely generous tax regime the Tories have created for them,” said Ms McCarthy.
“Even now, when oil and gas profits are soaring to record levels and people are struggling to pay their energy bills, the Tories have given them yet another tax break. It is time that they pay their fair share.”
Shell’s report shows the company paid £3.7bn to the Norwegian state, £3.7bn to Nigeria and £860m to the US in 2021.
Ms McCarthy said that the scale of subsidies provided by the UK to the oil giants highlighted the “absurdity” of the government’s refusal to backdate its temporary £5bn windfall tax, which came into effect in May.
BP chief executive Bernard Looney recently described current high prices as a “cash machine” for the producer.
There was no immediate response from Shell or HM Treasury to The Independent’s request for comment.
