Fracking Week in Parliament: DrillOrDrop review of what UK politicians say about the onshore oil and gas industry.
Justin Madders MP at Prime Minister’s Questions, 12 September 2018. Photo: From Parliament TV
The Prime Minister was questioned about statements on her website supporting local decision-making – at a time when the government proposes to take some shale gas schemes out of local authority control.
Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, the Labour MP for Ellesmere Port, Justin Madders, said the government’s proposals were causing “huge concern”:
“This concern is seemingly shared by a prominent Conservative MP, who has a number of statements on her website, including that ‘local planning decisions should be returned to locally elected councillors’, and ‘local councils need the power to stop unsuitable developments’.”
Mr Madders said:
“The Prime Minister will I hope recognise these comments. She made them. Does she still agree with them?”
Extract from Theresa May’s website (Red box added by DrillOrDrop)
Mrs May replied:
“It has always been the case, across the planning structure that we have here in the United Kingdom, that there are decisions taken at local level, but there are also decisions—sometimes those local decisions are referred—at a national level.”
Theresa May replying at Prime Minister’s Questions, 12 September 2018. Photo: From Parliament TV
The proposals were also the subject of a 30-minute Westminster Hall debate. Link to transcript and DrillOrDrop report. A public consultation on the proposals runs until 25 October 2018.
“Future depends on renewables”
Paul Blomfield MP asking about renewable energy at Prime Minister’s Questions, 12 September 2018. Photo: From Parliament TV
Labour’s Paul Blomfield (Sheffield Central) criticised government policy which he said was responsible for a halving of investment in renewable energy.
He asked the Prime Minister:
“Instead of encouraging carbon-emitting technologies such as fracking, which is deeply unpopular in Sheffield and across the country, will she recognise that our future depends on serious investment in wind, solar, tidal and other renewables?”
Mrs May replied:
“I believe that in the provision of energy across the United Kingdom we need to have a diverse range of supplies. That is why, yes, we do, we have and we will continue to support renewable energy, but it is also why we are ensuring, for example, that we have a supply of energy in the future from nuclear and that we look across other forms of energy as well—for example, ensuring that we see an increase in the number of interconnectors with Europe. A diverse supply is what we need in our energy sector.”
Delayed report
In a written question (6 September 2018), Labour’s Rosie Cooper asked why a report on shale gas potential impacts on air quality had been delayed.
The environment minister, Therese Coffey, replied:
“This was a routine report by the Air Quality Expert Group (AQEG). Although it was based on an assimilation of evidence that took place in 2015, the report itself was not finalised until 2017. It was prepared alongside other AQEG reports, for example on ultrafine particles and vegetation, which were produced on similar timelines. These reports were released together following publication of the government’s Clean Air Strategy.”
Categories: Politics
DRILL OR DROP? 
So what is your point ? May support convention oil production As the mix .We are not Fracking in the Weald basin Stop trying to put Ukog angus energy in the same basket as Fracking oil companies
I watched this “exchange”. May made them look silly and Bercow carefully avoided CL jumping up and down trying to get in on the act.
Staged-but they were instructed to leave town-or something less polite.
Wow – the quality of argument put forward by the pro-fracking brigade is starting to do the anti-frackers’ job for them!
How interesting that Theresa May is happy to oppose major developments in her constituency, but is determined to force fracking on communities elsewhere. Also interesting that Theresa May, Greg Clark, James Brokenshire and Claire Perry are in charge of fracking – but none of them are threatened by fracking in their own constituencies. Perhaps when Claire Perry is sacked for being basically clueless, they might consider appointing someone who actually has to deal with the threat of fracking in their own back yard.
Strange. I thought ministers were supposed to be responsible for their brief across the country, not part of the NIMBY movement. May said exactly that. Ignored by some but still fact.
Good job that’s something they have remembered.
No wonder Claire keeps on trouncing the opposition locally and nationally.
Strange. She did not mention fracking as one of her diverse supplies…..