Blow to fracking in England as only five of 138 MPs in target areas voice support

theguardian.com:

The prospect of fracking in England has been dealt another blow as only a handful of MPs for constituencies with exploration licences support the measure in their area, the Guardian can reveal.

When asked if they would support fracking in their constituencies, only five of the 138 MPs said they would. Forty one said they would be against it, while the rest did not reply, or declined to comment.

Many of the areas where fracking could be a possibility are in the “red wall”, with Conservative MPs representing those seats perhaps aware that their position could be difficult come the next general election.

One such MP, Alexander Stafford, won the 2019 election in Rother Valley, in South Yorkshire, a seat that had been Labour since it was created in 1918.

He said he was “very much against” fracking in his area, adding: “It is yesterday’s technology and will not solve our cost problems. It will take far too long to roll out. We must wean ourselves off hydrocarbons – which leave us in hock to awful dictators like Putin, or at the mercy of fluctuating international energy prices.”

At the other end of England, seats in largely Tory areas, including Surrey, Sussex and Dorset are covered by fracking licences.

Mims Davies, employment minister and MP for Mid Sussex, was clear there was no local support for fracking in her constituency or other affected areas.

She said: “I believe that shale gas exploration should only proceed with local support and as long as it is safe and environmentally responsible to the nearby communities. Alongside my own concerns about the potential impact of this type of drilling in special areas like Mid Sussex, I have previously written on behalf, and in support, of my deeply worried constituents in Cuckfield,