GET DRILLING TO STOP SOARING BILLS

KEIR Starmer has been urged to open up the UK's biggest oil field to stop power bills soaring.

- MARTYN BROWN

Critics say the Iran conflict must be a "wake-up call" for the PM to rethink his existing ban on new North Sea licences.

Reform MP Robert Jenrick said that his party would "unapologetically drill" in the area for oil and gas, "bringing back good jobs to the UK". He writes in the Daily Express today: "It is economic lunacy to ignore our rich energy reserves." The warning was sounded as figures reveal the UK economy stagnated in January - even before the outbreak of conflict in the Middle East, which triggered a major energy shock.

Analysts called the overall economic picture "subdued" and described flatlining gross domestic product as a "disappointing start to the year". Fears are mounting that Britain may even tip into recession as fighting continues.

It all makes for grim reading for Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who has pinned her hopes on improving economic growth. She said the gloomy data comes "amid an uncertain world" but insisted: "Our economic plan is the right one, but I know there is more to do." The Chancellor and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband held an emergency Downing Street summit with petrol retailers yesterday over soaring fuel prices as they desperately try to get a grip on the situation.

But with the country struggling to meet its energy requirements, there are increasing demands for the government to approve two further gas developments in the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields and to allow further exploration in the North Sea.