August 21: Government dash for fracking is damaging to democracy

From: Mike Potter, Pickering & District Civic Society.

THE Government’s Energy Secretary, Amber Rudd, and the Communities’ Secretary, Greg Clark, have said shale gas (fracking) applications will be “fast-tracked through a new, dedicated planning process”, including adding shale applications to the lists of appeals that can be “recovered”, where decisions are made by Ministers, rather than planning inspectors (The Yorkshire Post, August 14).

This begs certain questions: Which Ministers (and staff) have sufficient knowledge of both fracking and planning law to adequately fulfil this role? Given that fracking could be with us for 20-40 years, is it more important to decide these planning applications based on the speed they can be passed, or on existing planning law, factual data, risk and impact – however long that realistically takes?

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Does Ministerial guidance override planning law? How can any government that openly admits to be “going all out for shale” not be guilty of pre-determination in any judgement? “Local communities will remain fully involved in planning decisions”. How exactly, particularly if the decision has been pre-determined?

The Third Energy fracking application in Ryedale consists of seven volumes of highly technical data and will no doubt attract thousands of public responses. It took them three attempts to correctly submit the application, so it’s quite probable there will be a large number of inaccuracies and misleading, missing or incomplete data to identify and rectify.

Does Ms Rudd honestly believe that any cash-strapped local authority will have the manpower and expertise to safely rush that through in 16 weeks? And finally, how exactly does the Government define Westminster-based localism?

From: B J Hopkins, Great Barugh, Malton.

I TOTALLY agree with your Editorial (The Yorkshire Post, August 13) regarding the Government’s new powers to “fast track” fracking applications. The plan to strip communities of their chance to decide on the issue of fracking, by allowing Ministers to bypass local councils, entirely is a fatal wound in the heart of British democracy.

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In any other European country such a radical move would result in their capital cities being overwhelmed by angry constituents. However we British are of a calmer nature, and more likely to have already forgotten yesterday’s news, unless it directly affects us.

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