Ed Miliband promises permanent fracking ban just days after huge gas field is found that ‘could fuel Britain for a decade’_Nhy
Ed Miliband is reportedly determined to keep Labour‘s promise to ‘ban fracking for good’ – despite the discovery of a giant UK gas field that could provide a decade of fuel.
The Energy Secretary said yesterday he would stick to his party’s manifesto commitment – even though the Lincolnshire field could create jobs, reduce the UK’s reliance on imports and tide it over while renewables expand.
Britain faces a massive shortage of gas between now and 2050, of more than one trillion cubic metres of gas, according to modelling by the Government’s climate watchdog.
If the nation cannot supply itself, the UK will be hugely dependent on foreign imports to boost its reserves, the climate change committee said – declining North Sea reserves will only be able to make up a fifth of the shortfall.
Gas has also been dubbed a ‘bridging fuel’ by experts, as the nation moves from oil towards more renewable energy sources, as well as electricity, in the quest for net zero.
It has been suggested the gas field in the town of Gainsborough would create thousands of jobs too, according to early findings from the company that made the discovery, Egdon Resources.
But a spokesperson for Mr Miliband said: ‘We intend to ban fracking for good, as per our manifesto commitments. We will update on this in due course.’
The ‘Gainsborough Trough’ area, where the gas field was discovered, has some geologically similar counterparts across the UK – suggesting there are other parts of Britain that might harbour gas resources too.
Ed Miliband (pictured) is determined to keep Labour’s promise to ‘ban fracking for good’ – despite the discovery of a giant UK gas field that could provide a decade of fuel
The Energy Secretary said yesterday he would stick to his party’s manifesto commitment – even though the Lincolnshire field could create jobs and wealth, reduce the UK’s reliance on imports and tide it over while renewables expand. Pictured: File photo
Shadow energy secretary Andrew Bowie warned Labour’s ‘ideological drive against oil and gas’ was barring the country from accessing valuable reserves, stifling investment and putting hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk.
He added that the Government could act now to ensure energy security – but he believed it will not.
Reform UK MP Richard Tice said ‘sensible nations’ would embrace the ‘great news’ of a gas field discovery and extract fuel from it to provide cheap, reliable energy and create jobs and growth.
But, representing Boston and Skegness in Lincolnshire, where the field was found, he continued: ‘It’s gross negligence by Labour and the Tories not to want to make us better off by using our own energy reserves.’
He promised Reform UK would change that if given the chance.
Mr Miliband has supported a continued fracking ban because when extractions were last attempted in 2011, it risked earth tremors.
Many environmental campaigners agree, suggesting it is better to pay more for energy than to consider fracking, which they fear would accelerate the worsening climate crisis.
The Energy Secretary has also sworn not to allow any new investigation of fossil fuels.
A spokesperson for Mr Miliband said: ‘We intend to ban fracking for good, as per our manifesto commitments. We will update on this in due course’
But a third of the country’s electricity and the hot water and heating of the 25 million homes that use gas boilers are fuelled by natural gas. The UK uses around 75bn cubic metres of natural gas every year.
A decade ago, research done by the British Geological Survey showed the UK may have enough of its own as yet unexploited gas reserves to supply the country for 50 years – and perhaps even centuries.
Britain’s energy prices are among the highest worldwide.
A Department of Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said: ‘The biggest risk to our energy security is staying dependent on fossil fuel markets.
‘Only by sprinting to clean power by 2030 can the UK take back control of its energy and protect both family and national finances from price spikes.’
