QATAR IS THE SOURCE MUCH OF OUR GAS

We currently rely on Qatar for a key portion of our gas imports, but this is going to rise as we make up for the supply from Russia and the drop in North Sea supplies. 

 Our reliance on Qatari gas could rise in the future. The UK government has been nurturing the relationship with Doha, to ensure security of supply as North Sea reserves dwindle.

Britain in recent months has succeeded in cutting out imports from Russia. That was only about 4% of the UK total - but it makes the gas we source from Qatar even more crucial.

The EU is far more reliant on Russian gas, so securing alternatives is even more pressing.

Overall, the EU only got 5% of its gas from Qatar - but that could change. Olaf Scholz, chancellor of the bloc's biggest gas guzzler - Germany - has said that Qatar will play a central role in the country's strategy to diversify away from Russian gas. But it won't happen overnight.

Contract negotiations have been tricky. Qatar likes to supply gas under long-term deals, lasting 15-20 years, which may not be consistent with Western nations aims to decarbonise.

By contrast, China, with its less ambitious net-zero plans, has unveiled a 27-year agreement to buy a massive $60bn worth of Qatari gas. And Germany needs to boost its infrastructure, the terminals which receive the liquified natural gas - known as LNG - in order to take on more supplies.

The UK is ahead of the game in the latter - thanks to co-operation from Qatar. The country is a majority owner of the South Hook terminal in Wales, where LNG is offloaded into special containers. It's claimed the site can hold a fifth of the UK's daily gas needs - the Qatari government is investing millions to up that capacity by a quarter by 2025.

And by that point, Qatar is expecting to double its LNG output - with no shortage of customers. Many Asian nations are vying with Europe to tie down supplies to ensure energy security - and Qatar is seen as a relatively reliable and geopolitically tame option.

So much for all the talk of ending the use of fossil fuels. Our political leaders know it is totally unrealistic, but they carry on with the pretence. It is all a sham.