The decision to permanently seal Britain’s remaining shale gas wells has ignited significant backlash, with many questioning the wisdom of forfeiting potential domestic energy resources amidst escalating global instability.
Critics argue that Energy Secretary Ed Miliband’s order to seal the Lancashire wells – which are estimated to hold enough natural gas to power the UK for decades – demonstrates a profound lack of foresight and potentially jeopardizes national energy security.
Former Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick, speaking on GB News, drew parallels between the current situation and historical reliance on domestic resources during wartime. “During World War Two,” he stated, “the development and utilization of land-based oil wells proved absolutely crucial to winning the Battle of Britain and ultimately securing victory for the Allies.”
He highlighted a little-known operation where fuel for Britain’s Spitfire planes was partially supplied by oil extracted from the Eakring oil fields in Nottinghamshire. “Oil recovered from that site was pumped through a daring pipeline, strong yet flexible enough to follow Allied forces across the Channel to fuel the invasion of France in 1944 – Operation PLUTO,” Jenrick explained.
“Fast forward to today,” he continued, “and over in Lancashire, the Cuadrilla fracking wells sit safely drilled, capped and ready. They are our modern equivalent—strategic reserves, national assets ready to be used in extreme situations if, God forbid, our country was in peril once again.”
The public reaction has been overwhelmingly critical.
- One resident near the Eakring oil fields expressed outrage, saying: “I don’t think that Miliband has any right whatsoever to demand that these resources are closed down just because he has a whim about the easiest way to get himself into the history books. He’ll get himself into the history books in a very adverse way, in my opinion.”
Concerns have been raised that this decision is short-sighted and detrimental to Britain’s energy independence.
“The problem is that we are trying to get to net zero, but a lot of other countries are just carrying on,” commented one resident in Newark. “We’d make a one per cent difference [to global emissions] if we went to net zero.”
A group of parliamentarians accused Miliband of inadvertently aiding Russia’s interests by eliminating a potential domestic energy source, urging him to reconsider his decision.
Conservative MP Julian Lewis challenged the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on the issue. “Does he not recognize that taking a decision now to permanently seal these wells—preventing their use by future governments—is extremely irresponsible and reckless?”
Starmer defended the policy, stating: “There are real consequences of fracking… What we need to do to secure our independence and lower bills for the next generation is move at speed to renewable energy. That’s why there is record investment coming into renewable energy so that tyrants like Putin can’t put his boot on our throat.”
The North Sea Transition Authority, under Miliband’s oversight, has mandated the decommissioning of the two shale gas wells by June.
This isn’t the first time a similar plan was considered; in February 2022, the Boris Johnson administration initially blocked a proposal to seal the wells, with then-Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng stating it “did not necessarily make any sense.”
Despite previous reservations and ongoing criticism, Miliband’s department maintains its commitment to permanently banning fracking. A spokesperson stated: “We intend to ban fracking for good and make Britain a clean energy superpower to protect current and future generations.”
