1 May 2016
Just before the full Council meeting at Poole Civic Centre on 26th April, local Greenpeace campaigners delivered 24 ‘Frack-Free' cupcakes to Councillor Andy Hadley (Poole People Party) and eight other cross-party Councillors, urging them to stand up for local people’s right to decide on fracking developments.
Environmental campaigners are calling on all Borough of Poole Councillors to write to the government Communities Secretary Greg Clark asking him to respect the decisions of local planning authorities on fracking licences.
Last November, the Communities Secretary announced he would have the final say on controversial plans for fracking in Lancashire whatever the recommendation of a local planning inspector.
Just a few weeks later, a leaked letter from cabinet ministers, including Mr Clark, to George Osborne revealed government plans to reduce English councils’ powers to reject fracking applications.
Large areas of Dorset, including the ground under the Poole and Bournemouth conurbation, are licensed by the Government for dangerous high volume hydraulic fracturing, known as ‘fracking’, for gas.
Until the recent developments around fracking Greg Clark had been a staunch defender of local democracy, urging councils to be ‘masters of their own destiny’ and ‘take power and resources away from Whitehall’.
Local campaigners are urging their councillors to write to Mr Clark and ask him to explain how his approach to fracking planning applications will be compatible with his commitment to localism and local democracy.
Poole resident Simon O’Connor, a Greenpeace key activist and anti-fracking campaigner, who presented the 'Frack-Free' cupcakes, said: “This government wants to strip councils of their powers to decide on fracking so they can push through their controversial plans. Whether you’re for or against it, there’s no doubt the shale industry would have a significant impact on communities like ours. This is why the government should respect the fracking decisions taken by our council. When Communities Secretary Greg Clark makes his final deliberation on the Lancashire fracking licences over the next months, we want him to know people in Poole and across the UK will be watching.”
