Conservative shale gas pledge could kickstart investment, says expert

The Conservative manifesto (88-page / 328KB PDF) released last week promised that should the party be re-elected following the 8 June general election, it would develop the shale industry in the UK.

The manifesto said because shale gas was cleaner than coal it could reduce carbon emissions and “play a crucial role in rebalancing our economy”.

The party promised to change planning law, allowing non-fracking drilling as permitted development. It said it would establish a Shale Environmental Regulatory which would assume some functions of the Health & Safety Executive, the Environment Agency and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

“This will provide clear governance and accountability, become a source of expertise, and allow decisions to be made fairly but swiftly,” the party said in its manifesto.

It also said it would amend the proposed Shale Wealth Fund so a greater percentage of the tax revenues from shale gas would directly benefit the communities that host the extraction sites.

Energy and planning expert Mike Pocock of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said: “While Tory support for shale won’t be a surprise to the majority, plans to shake up the planning process may well be a game change for fracking in the UK. Progress has been made with some landmark projects being granted consent in the last 12 months but a package of measures to smooth out the consenting process could provide a much needed boost for investment into the industry.

“Permitted development will strip out some of the complex processes and decision making associated with planning consents and a dedicated regulator may well create the stable regulatory foundation needed to attract much needed investment into the industry.  It is also proposed that major shale planning decisions will, when necessary, become the responsibility of the national planning regime. Many in the industry have been calling for such a change for some time given the difficulties and delays experienced in taking shale planning applications through the current planning process. This is therefore an overdue but welcome proposal.” said Pocock.

There was considerable debate over the outgoing UK government's decision to allow shale gas fracking projects in Lancashire last year.  Meanwhile campaigners filed a High Court application against North Yorkshire County Council's decision to grant planning permission for a shale gas fracking project in the village of Kirby Misperton. 

Fracking is a process which involves pumping water at high pressure into rock to create narrow fractures through which trapped natural gas can flow out and be captured.

The development of a shale gas industry in the UK has been slow to emerge. As long ago as 2014 a House of Lords committee recommended the “urgent” development of a regulated industry.

Earlier that year a survey carried out by Pinsent Masons found most companies involved in the industry supported the creation of a single regulatory regime.