Month: September 2025

Gina will co-propose the following motion at County’s Full Council meeting on 16 October 2025

Extracting shale gas in the UK is expensive, environmentally damaging, and carries geological risks. Since 2016, the evidence against fracking – a method of recovering oil and gas from shale rock – has become clear, despite repeated attempts by the industry to present it positively. Concerns about fracking include water contamination, greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution, noise, heavy road traffic, land use, and the risk of induced earth tremors.

 The promised benefits of fracking – jobs, lower energy prices, and energy security – were shown to be false during attempts to establish the industry in Lancashire. A Government-commissioned report found that only around 15% of jobs would be local, while former Energy Secretary Ed Davey confirmed it would have “no effect” on household bills.

 Recent comments by Richard Tice MP, pledging to overturn the national ban on fracking and using the phrase “Frack Baby Frack,” have caused deep concern among Lancashire residents. Although the current Reform UK administration in Lancashire has stated it would not welcome fracking on the Fylde Coast, there remains widespread public concern that it could return elsewhere in the county.

 This Council resolves:

i. To acknowledge that many Lancashire residents strongly oppose shale gas and oil extraction anywhere in the county.

ii. To note the current moratorium on fracking.

iii. To ask the Chief Executive to write to Government, calling for the existing moratorium on fracking to be replaced with a permanent national ban.

 

Gina has criticised Reform UK’s double standards on energy subsidies. She says:

“Reform leaders claim that climate resilience is too expensive for taxpayers – yet they are willing to allow even bigger subsidies to the fossil fuels sector, including corporation tax relief on North Sea oil and gas investments.”

Between 2015 and 2023 the fossil fuel sector received roughly £20 billion more in total Government support than renewables, i.e. £80 bn for fossil fuels versus around £60 bn for renewables. A fifth of the money given directly to the fossil fuels sector was to support new extraction and mining.”

Green County Councillor Gina Dowding asked the leader of the Council at the Cabinet meeting on 10 July whether he agreed with the science on climate change. While he said he agreed with the science, he didn’t agree with subsidising renewable energy or energy efficiency measures with taxpayers’ money.

At Full Council the following week, The Cabinet Member for the Environment, County Cllr Joshua Roberts, would not give a ‘yes or no’ answer to the same question.

Cllr Dowding added:

“It is not difficult to work out why Reform UK do not want to challenge fossil fuel subsidies. Their party is financed by backers with huge oil and gas interests.

“Reform must fully commit to much-needed action to make us more resilient to climate impacts, and to measures that will reduce polluting emissions from our buildings and homes, transport and industry. Warm homes with lower bills, food security and resilience to flooding would benefit all residents in Lancashire.”