In a previously unpublished letter, former Chancellor Norman Lamont said Falkland oil revenues should go to the British government and not to the people of the Falkland Islands. “I have no doubt that in the event of a major oil spill, tax revenue will have to be raised in the UK treasury. “This seems fair to me only in view of the very significant economic and other sacrifices that the United Kingdom has made να to secure the freedom of the Falkland Islands,” Lamont wrote to then-Secretary of State Douglas Heard on October 21, 1991. Lamont added: “We would not want to give credibility to the allegation that our Falkland Islands business was motivated by the belief that there was oil in the Falkland Islands, which would be completely untrue.” However, he and other cabinet ministers, including Prime Minister John Major and Herd, agreed that Britain should receive the bulk of its oil revenues, approving a 1991 Overseas and Defense Policy Committee document that said “If the oil was in commercially recoverable quantities, HMG [Her Majesty’s Government] Or it should take the necessary steps to ensure that HMG can secure access to a significant share of the resulting revenue. “ The newspaper asked: “Should the people of the Falkland Islands be the sole beneficiaries of what could be comparatively vast wealth?” He concluded: “We should seek access to oil-related revenues only when it is clear that the economic benefits will outweigh the political difficulties.” The ministers agreed to authorize the islanders to conduct seismic surveys to determine the size of the oil fields and then decide how to distribute the revenue. On November 22, 1991, Britain declared its right to up to 200 nautical miles of seabed and subsoil around the islands. The Falkland Islands government began bidding for oil exploration licenses in 1996, but all proceeds since then have been concentrated in the Falkland’s government and not in Britain. Official documents for the years after 1991 have not yet been declassified, but the result suggests that the British government concluded that the value of oil revenues did not outweigh the political embarrassment of claiming them. The declassified documents show that Britain has long been interested in oil around the Falkland Islands. In 1975, an energy official wrote: “Our ministers are very interested in the possibility of offshore oil being exploited around the Falkland Islands.” Prior to the Falklands War, Britain vigorously defended its claim to possible oil reserves around the islands. Britain formally protested when Argentina commissioned a seismic survey off the coast of Argentina in early 1977. An energy official wrote that “the worst thing would be to do nothing”, as this could lead to “we give up without whispering the title any oil may be under the sea outside the 200-meter line “. Britain protested again in 1981 when Argentina auctioned off more exploration permits. A State Department official wrote: “We have to argue that any oil on the Falkland Islands is British, without specifying whether we mean HMG or the Falkland Islands have the right to exploit it. “The important thing is that it is ours and not Argentina.” Subscribe to the First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7 p.m. BST In July 1980, the government of Margaret Thatcher held secret talks with Argentina and proposed a “lease” agreement under which island sovereignty would be transferred to Argentina, but then leased to Britain. As ministers considered the idea, Secretary of Energy David Howell wrote to Secretary of State Lord Carrington on 5 February 1980: “I hope you will not miss the opportunity to maintain UK access any oil or gas that may be found in the waters of the Falkland Islands. “ He reiterated that call in a letter to Thatcher later that month. The cabinet’s defense and overseas policy committee, which included Thatcher, agreed on November 7, 1980, to seek the islanders’ approval of a lease agreement. The Ministers noted: “It would be important to make satisfactory arrangements for any oil that can be discovered; further considerations should be given to securing the UK’s right to a substantial share of the revenue.”
