Boris Johnson's "energy supply strategy" to help Britain cope with the new era of war has been delayed - as pressure mounts over the UK's reliance on Saudi Arabia.
The Prime Minister pledged a long-term plan "in the days ahead" last Monday - and announced the UK will phase out use of Russian oil, but not gas, this year.
But a week later his grand plan has still not materialised, and now it will not be published this week. No10 said it was due "this month".
Asked why it has been delayed, the PM's official spokesman said: “I wouldn’t say it has been - it’s important we take the time to get this right." It's understood it will announce more renewable and nuclear power sources.
It comes after reports Boris Johnson will visit Saudi Arabia this week and meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in a bid to cut Britain's energy reliance on Russia.
That is set to spark claims of hypocrisy, as Saudi Arabia executed 81 people on Saturday in its biggest mass execution in decades - days after Foreign Secretary Liz Truss called for Britain to cut reliance on authoritarian regimes.
Mr Johnson's spokesman refused to confirm or deny the trip, saying: "I'm not able to confirm the Prime Minister’s travel. We set out travel plans in the normal way."
He insisted: “We will be speaking to the Saudis about a range of issues, not just energy supply. Diversifying our energy supply is important, as is boosting renewable energy”.
He added: "The UK is firmly opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances in every country as a matter of principle.
"We raise human rights issues with other countries including Saudi Arabia and we will be raising Saturday’s executions with the government in Riyadh."
But the spokesman dodged saying whether the PM agreed with Ms Truss , instead saying: "Certainly it’s a shared view that we need to boost our independence, we need to diversify our supply.”
He also rejected Labour's call for a windfall tax on the vast profits of energy giants.
He said: “The government’s view remains that a windfall tax could deter investment opportunities, put jobs at risk, and could risk the security of our energy supply. That remains our position. It’s right that oil and gas companies pay a significantly higher tax rate than other firms, but that remains our position.”
