Emails released today by the Government show James Shaw may have vetoed the Government’s original plan for a moratorium on offshore oil and gas exploration, says ACT Leader David Seymour.

"It appears the original plan was for the ‘Interim [Climate Change] Committee [to] gather evidence and analysis relevant to the role of future offshore oil and gas exploration in the context of the Government’s net-zero carbon target by 2050’.

"No new offshore blocks were to be offered until the Committee considered the impact of future offshore exploration and provided advice and recommendations to the Government.

"The Greens didn’t like this. Co-leader James Shaw was concerned this would ‘significantly broaden the scope of the work planned for the Interim Committee which, given its limited budget and resourcing could impact on its ability to deliver on its other key focus’.

"We now know the final announcement from the Government was a straight ban on offshore oil and gas exploration.

"So, did James Shaw veto the Government’s original plan to gather evidence on the impact of future offshore oil and gas exploration, overruling Winston Peters in the process?

"The Greens should come clean and tell New Zealanders why they are so afraid of considering the real-world impacts of their decision", says Mr Seymour.

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