Rishi Sunak says banning flying 'absolutely the wrong approach', as he defends taking private jet to Scotland in terse exchange with BBC journalist

Mr Sunak is set to officially announce millions of pounds of funding for a carbon capture project in Peterhead, and hundreds of new oil and gas licences for the North Sea, in Aberdeenshire later on Monday.

It is hoped the carbon capture project, which takes carbon dioxide emissions and stores them underground to stop them entering the atmosphere, will help the UK meet its climate change targets.

However, the Prime Minister is using a private jet to travel from London to Aberdeen, and has defended it as the most efficient way for the leader of the UK to get around in a terse interview on BBC Good Morning Scotland.

He was speaking when he was asked if he was taking a private jet to Aberdeen.

In response, Mr Sunak said: “I’ll be flying as I normally would. It is the most efficient use of my time.

“But that question brings to light a great debate as others think the answer to climate change is to ban everything and stop people going on holiday. That is absolutely the wrong approach.

“Every prime minister before me has used planes to travel around the United Kingdom because it is the most efficient use of time for the person who is running the country, so I can keep focusing on delivering for the people.”

Mr Sunak said suggesting no one should be allowed to fly to go on their holidays was “completely and utterly wrong”, and “not the approach to tackling climate change”.

Mr Sunak added: “What we are doing is investing in sustainable aviation fuel and carbon capture will help us make that transition.

“It is not about banning flying, it is about investing in new technology that will make flying more sustainable – that’s the right approach to this.”

The Prime Minister moved to conclude the interview with BBC Scotland presenter Martin Geissler by saying “bye, bye”.