LABOUR has been accused of misleading the public in the debate over independence after one of its own policy documents revealed North Sea oil reserves will not run out for “at least 30 years”.

While the party has claimed publicly that an independent Scotland would face economic catastrophe because of dwindling oil reserves, the internal Labour document says the industry will continue to flourish for decades to come.

The disclosure comes after government figures suggested last week that, without the tax revenues generated by oil, an independent Scotland would face an £11 billion black hole.

That led Labour to claim the SNP would be forced to raise taxes or cut public spending if they win power next year and Scotland becomes independent.

Last week Wendy Alexander, the former enterprise minister who is leading Labour’s attack on the SNP’s economic strategy, described North Sea oil as a “decreasing, volatile resource”.

In an article she said: “Oil production is already down one third, is due to fall further and could be exhausted by 2030. So not only will the Union dividend have gone but so will oil revenues — long before many Scots are picking up their pensions.”

The attack was the latest in a series by senior Labour figures after opinion polls put the SNP on course to win next May’s Scottish election and showed that most Scots support independence.

However, the policy document, produced by Labour’s Scottish policy forum last month and signed off by Jack McConnell, rejects Alexander’s suggestion that oil could run out within 24 years, and claims: “There remains at least 30 years of oil and gas in the UK continental shelf.

“Given our technical and academic excellence, opportunities exist for Scottish expertise to develop clean technology for continued use of fossil fuels in our energy mix.”

Alex Salmond, the SNP leader, said the paper had “blown a hole” in Labour’s argument. “Labour has been caught out saying one thing in private while they try to scaremonger Scotland in public,” he said.

Nevertheless, expert opinion is divided over how long North Sea oil will last. Salmond insists that oil revenues are rising. But the United Kingdom Offshore Operators Association predicts production will fall from 3.5m barrels a day now to below 1m before 2020.

Last week Labour continued its offensive against the SNP with Ed Balls, the Treasury minister, claiming independence would damage Scotland’s financial sector, which accounts for more than 200,000 jobs.

He said: “The reality is that the Scottish financial services sector is very closely integrated with the rest of the UK. Independence would lead to huge uncertainty, great costs.”

The SNP insisted that the financial sector of an independent Scotland would flourish, pointing out that Ireland’s had quadrupled in size over the past decade.

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