Fracking Labour to speed up permanent ban plans

The government is to speed up plans to ban fracking in the UK, Ed Miliband announced yesterday to counter Reform UK's promises to bring back the practice.

- Helena Horton Environment reporter

The energy secretary said he would put forward legislation as part of the North Sea transition plan, which is to be published this autumn. This means that to allow fracking a future government would have to repeal the legislation with a parliamentary vote.

That would be very difficult, as it means the government would have to gain the votes of MPs whose constituencies sit on shale gas. Miliband used his speech at the Labour conference to say the party will send campaigners to nearly 200 constituencies to “send the frackers packing”.