David Cameron has rejected calls for a moratorium on fracking from senior MPs, including his former environment secretary Caroline Spelman, saying the US shale gas revolution can be repeated in the UK.
The prime minister’s renewed backing for increasingly controversial shale gas exploration comes at the start of a pivotal week for the industry, with key votes by parliament on Monday and Lancashire County Council from Wednesday.
Monday also saw the revelation in the Guardian of George Osborne’s instructions to cabinet minister to make “personal priorities” of dozens of interventions to fast-track fracking, including the delivery of numerous “asks” from shale gas company Cuadrilla.
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“I want to see unconventional [shale] gas properly exploited in our country,” said Cameron, during a visit to Hampshire on Monday. “I think there are good reasons for doing this. We want to have greater energy security, we want to keep prices down, we also want to tackle climate change.”
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