Scotsman: Comment: SNP must take stand against fracking
CIRCUMSTANCES are conspiring to ensure that in the next few months, the SNP will have to come off the fence and either decisively stop the unconventional gas industry north of the Border or admit that they are happy to let big companies like INEOS drill and frack significant parts of Scotland.
While the UK government has shamelessly courted the frackers, the Scottish Government has been more cautious. It has put in place tough new planning rules, objected to plans for Westminster to take away the right of people to say “no” to fracking under their homes, and promised new work looking into health impacts and gaps in environmental protection.
That’s all well and good, but unlike Ireland, the Netherlands and many others, they haven’t actually acted to stop unconventional gas extraction, despite having the powers to do so. This may come as a surprise to the SNP’s 60,000+ new members, many of whom were left with the impression from the referendum campaign that the SNP was outright opposed to shale gas fracking (and other forms of unconventional gas extraction).