THE astonishing potential oil wealth in the North Sea was kept hidden by the UK Government – but today’s special edition of The National sets out just how damaging this has been for Scotland and digs into solutions for the future.

The McCrone Report – a government memorandum delivered weeks before the General Election of February 1974 – was not made public due to the boost it would inevitably have given to the Scottish independence cause.

To spread the word, as well as printing the report in full in today’s newspaper, it is free to read on our website and we will be doing a livestream on our social media accounts to discuss what this 50th anniversary means.

Compiled by Professor Gavin McCrone, then chief economic adviser at the Scottish Office, the McCrone Report was then sent to the Labour government.

Read more from our McCrone 50th Anniversary special edition here:

The SNP saw their first real electoral successes that year with the “It’s Scotland’s Oil” campaign during the two General Elections held in 1974, with their vote share growing from 20% and seven seats in February of that year to 30% and 11 seats in October.

But while the issue of Scotland’s North Sea resources has stayed in the public eye, the political landscape has shifted completely.

The planet is gripped by a climate crisis, with scientists warning that all production and exploration for oil and gas must stop, while most countries, including Scotland and the wider UK, are pivoting towards net zero.

Despite this, the UK Government opened up a licensing round in the North Sea for more than 100 projects in July 2023 to boost domestic energy supplies, with the most recent ones being issued in January this year last month.

But while the UK finds itself in the midst of a Conservative-driven cost of living crisis, with people paying soaring energy bills while oil and gas firms return billions in profits, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund – begun with oil revenues – has reached a staggering figure of more than £1 trillion in assets and is used by the government there to fund social projects.

The suppression of McCrone's (below) report has undoubtedly had an impact on Scotland and its future.

The National:

The National previously published the full McCrone Report to draw attention to the scandal inflicted on Scotland – and we do so again in today’s edition. But we’re going further.

We’re digging into exactly how the squandering of our oil wealth has harmed Scotland – to the extent that its ramifications are being felt during the cost of living crisis – and how the UK Government is threatening Scotland’s ability to move to net zero.

The National’s editor Laura Webster said: “Fifty years ago, the prime minister at the time was given the McCrone Report, which set out the astonishing wealth of Scotland’s oil.

“It was hushed up to suppress independence support. We are publishing it in full and going further, exploring how being in the Union threatened our economy, our people and our environment.

“This is not about the past. This is about the future.

“The McCrone Report and its legacy are a piece of living history, and our series will set out how the decision to keep that information secret from the people of Scotland has brought us to where we are now – in the midst of a cost of living crisis, with energy bills soaring through the roof.

“We hope to shine a light on how an energy-rich country such as Scotland has been held back by Westminster.”