LANCASHIRE COUNCILLORS QUESTION FRACKING REGULATIONS & HIGHLIGHT RISK TO PUBLIC SAFETY
Frack Free Lancashire
PRESS RELEASE
LANCASHIRE COUNCILLORS QUESTION FRACKING REGULATIONS & HIGHLIGHT RISK TO PUBLIC SAFETY
For immediate release
14 AUGUST 2018
Three local councillors have written an open letter to Greg Clark, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy; Michael Gove, Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and Mark Menzies, MP for Fylde, highlighting crucial defects in the regulatory bodies and highlight the bias demonstrated in favour of the fracking industry over communities.
The three local councillors, who have all been part of the group since its formation in 2017, complain that recent events have revealed serious deficiencies in the power of regulators, and in the completeness of information provided to the group.
Their concerns were prompted by the revelation that information about Cuadrilla’s sixth recorded set of breaches was apparently withheld from the group’s last meeting, and was only discovered as a result of an investigation by members of the public.
The councillors stated:
“If a regulator is not sharing information with the Community Liaison Group (CLG) there is no transparency in the system. The CLG is therefore undermined as it is clearly unable to provide the open forum for debate that is necessary around a controversial and untested industry.
“The timing of this is deeply troubling given that Cuadrilla is currently preparing the site to commence fracking within the month.
The government intends to take planning decisions for fracking away from local authorities and enable decisions to be fast-tracked. In our opinion, the robust regulation that we have been promised is non-existent.
The regulatory authorities have been rendered ineffective by consistent cut-backs and directives and therefore, public safety is being compromised.”
ENDS