The chief executive of Octopus Energy has urged Ed Miliband to permit fresh drilling in the North Sea, cautioning that Britain is "staring down the barrel" of a renewed energy emergency.
Greg Jackson, who leads the nation's largest gas and electricity supplier, made his intervention following the Middle East conflict that has sent commodity prices surging.
"Global gas prices have doubled since Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, and UK wholesale electricity prices are up about 50 per cent," Mr Jackson wrote in The Telegraph.
He argued that transporting fuel from distant regions makes little sense when domestic reserves remain available.
"The UK needs more sovereign energy, and this requires practical, pragmatic decisions," he stated. "Ideology, wishful thinking, nostalgia and culture wars don't provide actual solutions."
Mr Jackson's remarks present a particular challenge for the Energy Secretary, given that the Octopus founder serves as a non-executive director on the Cabinet Office Board whilst also being a prominent advocate for renewable energy.
Beyond his demand to exploit domestic fossil fuel reserves, Mr Jackson took aim at expensive green initiatives championed by Mr Miliband.
"We shouldn't be paying billions for expensive distractions," he declared, singling out carbon capture and hydrogen projects as wasteful expenditure.
Greg Jackson urges Labour to allow new North Sea drilling
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The Middle East turmoil has intensified pressure on the Government to reverse its prohibition on new North Sea exploration, with criticism mounting from the Conservative Party, the SNP and trade unions including Unite.
Mr Jackson acknowledged that North Sea reserves cannot solve all problems, noting it has been two decades since domestic production could satisfy national demand.
Rachel Reeves held discussions with oil and gas industry executives on Wednesday, though the Treasury offered no immediate relief from the windfall tax.
A spokesman for the Chancellor confirmed the Government's intention to abolish the Energy Profits Levy by 2030, stating: "The Chancellor is clear that she wants the Energy Profits Levy to come to an end. She has made that promise, and she stands by it."
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UK wholesale electricity prices are up about 50 per cent
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However, the spokesman added that the Middle East crisis had prompted a cautious approach to any immediate changes.
David Whitehouse of Offshore Energies UK, who attended the meeting, said ministers had committed to working with the sector on a replacement for the levy.
"The industry is ready to invest up to £50billion in new activity by 2050," he added.
Shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho condemned the Government's approach, highlighting that liquefied natural gas imports from countries such as Qatar had risen 42 per cent year-on-year as British production collapses.
The industry is ready to invest up to £50billion in new activity by 2050, Mr Jackson said
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She said: "The action Rachel Reeves should have taken this week was to back the North Sea by scrapping the Energy Profits Levy and ending the mad ban on new drilling.
"We cannot be making ourselves more reliant on other parts of the world when the world is becoming more dangerous. It is completely unforgivable."
Ashley Kelty of investment bank Panmure Liberum offered a similarly scathing assessment.
"These look like more weasel words and woolly thinking from the Government, with no concrete action to help," he said, adding that the Chancellor appeared unserious about supporting the sector.