YP Comment: May's fracking bonanza? Residents to receive payouts

It is seen as an attempt to quell the palpable anger still felt by those living in places like Kirby Misperton, in North Yorkshire, on the fracking frontline.

However, the Prime Minister’s decision marks a big shift in policy. Under a £1bn shale wealth scheme launched by former chancellor George Osborne, councils or community trusts in areas affected were set to receive payments from the Government. Now this cash could go straight to households.

Mrs May certainly can’t be accused of dithering over the crucial issue of the nation’s energy supply. Since taking over as Prime Minister she has replaced the Department for Energy and Climate Change and created a beefed-up Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. She has also slammed the brakes on plans to build the new £18bn Hinkley nuclear power station following concerns over Chinese involvement and whether it was value for money for taxpayers and energy users.

Britain is at an important crossroads regarding its energy provision. Fracking represents a new, albeit controversial, frontier as we look at ensuring the nation’s lights remain switched on in the future, but opponents and campaigners still have genuine concerns over the environmental impact it could bring.

So while Mrs May is to be applauded for ensuring that “people” and not just councils benefit from these key economic decisions, 
it will take a lot more 
than cash handouts to convince those living next door to the drilling that fracking ought to be part of the equation.

Labour Party remote from rural issues

CLAIMS that Labour has “never been seen as more remote” from the interests of rural Britain will not come as a great surprise to many people. After all, rural communities have never been traditional Labour heartlands.

What makes these criticisms so damaging, however, is they are made in an internal party report, drawn up by the office of then shadow rural affairs secretary Maria Eagle in 
the wake of last year’s
general election defeat, when Labour lost ground in 
many countryside constituencies.

By treating the countryside with “polite indifference” Labour is not only failing to address the key issues facing farmers, producers and the multitude of thriving rural businesses, it is missing the chance to engage with a large swathe of the electorate whose votes will help decide the next election.

The same report also warns that Labour faces huge problems overcoming widely-held perceptions that it has become too London-centric. It is a view shared by many traditional Labour voters in the North who feel the party no longer understands or listens to their concerns.

The fact that this damning report has come to light at the same time as Labour grandee Lord Mandelson has accused party leader Jeremy Corbyn of sabotaging the campaign to keep Britain in the EU only serves to highlight what a parlous state the Labour Party is in right now.

Unless it unites and formulates credible plans that tackle the concerns of the whole country, rather than just a metropolitan elite, it will continue to languish on the political sidelines.

Policing in the 21st Century

There was a time, not too long ago, when the traditional bobby on the beat had little more than handcuffs and a truncheon in the fight against crime.

But in an effort to bring policing into the 21st Century, West Yorkshire Police is equipping its officers with state-of-the-art cameras as part of a new £2m investment funded by the Police and Crime Commissioner. Police chiefs say the cameras, which can be attached to the torso or the helmet, will capture evidence at crime scenes which can then be used when cases go to court.

In an age when technology plays such a key role in our every day lives it is right that those tasked with protecting the public and upholding law and order are given the tools necessary to do their jobs.

There may be some people who question whether such cameras are required, but if they improve the effectiveness of the criminal justice system and police accountability and transparency then it is a welcome step.