Investment in the UK oil and gas sector is falling short of levels needed to help industry manage the country’s production natural decline responsibly, an industry report has claimed, amid calls for new policy initiatives to help address a looming energy security problem.

In its latest Business Outlook, industry organisation Offshore Energy UK (OEUK) states that a combination of windfall taxes regime and persistent uncertainty over energy policy have deterred investment in domestic oil and gas projects and could result in higher energy imports needed to plug a widening supply gap.