Labour plans to pass a law to permanently ban the controversial oil and gas extraction technique
Ed Miliband will use his speech at Labour conference today to announce that the government will introduce a permanent ban on fracking.
A temporary ban on the controversial technique which is used to extract oil and gas from shale rock has been in place since 2019, but was briefly lifted by Liz Truss when she was prime minister.
Today, the secretary of state for energy security and net zero will announce that the Labour government will introduce a law to ban fracking permanently.
Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, involves drilling into the earth and injecting a high-pressure mixture of water, sand and chemicals into the rock to release gas. The process can cause earth tremors.
In an exclusive message Miliband to 38 Degrees campaigners, he said: “I am about to announce something you have been calling for and campaigning on, which is to ban fracking for good. You called for it, I’m going to do it, thank you for your campaigning.”
Reform UK is in favour of fracking, with senior Reform figures such as Nigel Farage and Richard Tice repeating Donald Trump’s slogan “Drill baby drill”.
Veronica Hawking, campaigns director at 38 Degrees said: “What an amazing result for our environment, our local communities, and the thousands of committed people and groups right across the country who’ve spent years fighting for fracking to be banned for good.
“Not long ago, it felt like fracking might make a comeback, with Reform UK pushing to put it back on the agenda. But thousands of us stood up, demanded a permanent ban, and made our voices impossible to ignore.”
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
Left Foot Forward doesn’t have the backing of big business or billionaires. We rely on the kind and generous support of ordinary people like you.
You can support hard-hitting journalism that holds the right to account, provides a forum for debate among progressives, and covers the stories the rest of the media ignore. Donate today.
