A group supporting shale gas operations in Lancashire has invited business leaders to take part in a survey about attitudes to protester activity in the county.
The online survey, organised by Lancashire for Shale, also invites participants to give consent for their name to be used in a letter to a local newspaper.
The introduction to the poll refers to protests at BAE Systems at Wharton and Cuadrilla’s shale gas site at Preston New Road, Little Plumpton.
But it was put online before yesterday’s announcement by Moore’s Readymix of St Anne’s that it would no longer supply the Preston New Road site.
The poll, hosted by Survey Monkey, asked participants to say whether they agreed or disagreed with the following statements:
- Protester activity is likely to have a negative impact on public perception of the county
- Protester activity is likely to have a negative impact on the Lancashire economy
- Protester activity is likely to directly harm the performance of my business in Lancashire
- I am concerned about the economic costs of protester activity in Lancashire
- I am concerned about the policing costs of protester activity in Lancashire
On the protests outside Cuadrilla’s Preston New Road site, participants were asked to agree or disagree with these statements:
- Protester activity and direct action is likely to have a negative impact on public perception of the area
- Protester activity and direct action is likely to have a negative impact on the local economy
- Protester activity and direct action is likely to directly harm the performance of my business
- I am concerned about protester activity and direct action at Preston New Road
- I am concerned about the economic costs of protester activity and direct action at Preston New Road
- I am concerned about the policing costs of protester activity and direct action at Preston New Road
The poll asked for details about the business, such as turnover, employment, sector. It also asked participants to give their views on whether:
- People have a right to peaceful protest
- Protests should be fairly but robustly policed
- Protests should not be allowed to disrupt local business
The final questions asks:
“Would you support a call to national protesters to end their disruptive direct action at Preston New Road?”
“Do you consent to us featuring your name and Company/Organisation as signatories to a letter to a local newspaper calling on national protesters to cease their disruptive and potentially dangerous behaviour at Preston New Road shale gas site?”
DrillOrDrop asked Lancashire for Shale how many companies had been invited to participate in the survey, how they had been selected, how many had replied, how long the survey was open and how the results would be used.
Lancashire for Shale said:
“We sent the survey to named contacts in predominantly Lancashire businesses with whom we’ve corresponded previously (and that, for Data Protection purposes, have consented to us contacting them).
“In conducting the survey, we are simply trying to gauge how Lancashire businesses view protestor activity in general as well as that specific to shale gas exploration so that we are better able to reflect their views in future. We currently have no specific plans for how the results may be used in the future.”
The survey referred several times to “national protesters”. DrillOrDrop asked whether Lancashire for Shale had a different view of local people who protested, as opposed to people who lived outside the area.
The group did not respond to this question.
Categories: Industry
DRILL OR DROP? 
Wonder what would happen if someone did a survey monkey questionnaire, changing “Protester” to “Fracking” ?
Hardly an unbiased set of parameters, perhaps a more balanced questionnaire is called for to counter it, by which I mean a truly unbiased set of questions, not angled in any way whatsoever and asked of every local resident, not just a chosen known bias group?
Let me get this right. A pro fracking group is going to survey businesses only they select to ask whether they agree with protests against fracking!!!!
The questions look extremely biased and obviously aimed at getting the answers they want which they will no doubt use to churn out even more pro fracking propaganda. It doesn’t sound a very genuine survey or they would send to all businesses regardless. The results are unlikely to hold water. Call me cynical but I would put money on they only target those businesses who have already said they approve of fracking Lancashire and will no doubt use the results to denigrate protestors. I studied statistics and will be sharing this with colleagues and my business friends to see if they think this survey is impartial and robust.
Can I suggest they also send the survey to the hundreds of businesses who have spoken out opposing fracking. If not we will.
How could anyone take any results from the loaded questions in this survey seriously even if it were sent to a random sample? They are clearly getting very very desperate.
I disagree with the survey too. Anything that would dissuade these protestors/anarchists/terrorists/extremists from keeping on keeping on is against our best interests as industry supporters. The anti-frack terrorists are melting down before our eyes, and it is happening quite rapidly. Allow them to self-destruct without interfering. Grab some popcorn and watch the show!
My you must have good vision if you can see protectors melting down (lol) from 4000 miles away
I recall a claim that the distance was 2500 miles away, that would place that in mid Atlantic, or presuming a spherical radius either 2500 miles above, below, east, west south or north of us or combination thereof?
Perhaps he has us surrounded? Agent Smith perhaps?
Anyway, as you say, excellent vision and considering the curvature of the earth, maybe x-ray too? Or perhaps it is the view of a flat earther? But at the end of the day, its not what we see, its how we perceive it, from the recent accidents outside the Cuadrilla site, we all perceive different things and draw different conclusions. Witness statements at traffic accident hearings often reveal the same differences in perceived events, times, sequence, words and even colours of vehicles. So we should be grateful that at least these associated events were filmed. I didn’t notice any ‘meltdown’ on the phone videos, that seems to be one of those remote perception things?
It’s just that obvious, John, that you can see it from halfway around the world! ;o) Love it!
Peeny, hilarious entertainment as always from you. The frackers are all but finished, and the popcorn tastes delicious.
Well Skyherald, if that makes you feel better, keep repeating it. Disregard the facts that shale gas exploration is proceeding.
This is an article from Wakeupworld and has an interesting post on the Hopi attitude to this, the seventh generation since the European settlement of Turtle Island (USA) and the predicted effects of exploiting the earths resources. http://wakeup-world.com/2013/06/28/a-little-green-revolution/?
Not perhaps for those think we can ravage the earth with impunity.
So, Protectors are the semantics, and that is nice and cosy and cuddly! Lots of beards and anoraks.
BUT Ineos have raised the stakes and will trump that with Defenders now, following on from Jim’s sizeable investment into ecology in Iceland!
Big difference though is that the former are out to destroy jobs, and costing revenue from the tax payers, whilst the Defenders will produce many, well paid jobs, contributing taxes.
“All but finished”?? Keep it going , as suggested. You continue to convince the converted.