Hampshire urged to ban new oil and gas developments in updated planning rules
Campaigners have called for a “blanket ban” on new oil and gas developments in new planning rules proposed for Hampshire.
Campaigners have called for a “blanket ban” on new oil and gas developments in new planning rules proposed for Hampshire.
Fracking Week in Parliament (week ending 6 April 2018) The Energy Minister, Claire Perry, was questioned for the second consecutive week on the impact of shale oil drilling in south east England.
UKIP says shale gas is too great an opportunity to ignore but it has promised not to drill for it in national parks.
The government has confirmed it will not allow fracking to be carried out from wells drilled at the surface of English protected areas, including National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and special wildlife sites.
The Energy Minister, Andrea Leadsom, suggested today that shale gas companies would not apply to frack in sensitive areas, such as the edge of villages.
The government has been accused of attacking democracy and privately contradicting public statements, following publication at the weekend of a leaked letter on fracking policy.
The government promised to deliver shale in 2015 – but during the year no wells were fracked and no applications for shale gas exploration were approved.
Four Conservative MPs voted against the government yesterday to allow fracking under national parks and other protected areas. They were: Zac Goldsmith, the Conservative candidate for Mayor of London and MP for Richmond Park; Jason McCartney (Colne Valley), Sarah Wollaston (Totnes) and Andrew Turner (Isle of Wight).
To check how your MP voted in yesterday’s ballot on fracking under National Parks, you can download: This pdf of results FrackingUnderNationalParkVote or This Excel spreadsheet Fracking under National Parks vote. If you are viewing on an android mobile phone try the PDF first. Source: Hansard
After MPs backed fracking under National Parks, Labour immediately called for a moratorium. The vote, by 298-261, approved the government’s Draft Onshore Hydraulic Fracturing (Protected Areas) Regulations 2015.