Fracking for shale gas is not guaranteed to provide the "silver bullet" needed to solve Britain's high energy bill woes, according to MPs. Although...
What does 'fracking' mean to you? A slang version of a swear word used as to avoid censorship? A new dance wave hitting the discothèques? Or a potential solution to the demand for gas over the next 200 years?
Is a dash for gas the answer? Gas is the cleanest of the three fossil fuels and emits only half as much CO2 as coal. Estimates vary on the amount of shale gas available, but the consensus is that we have enough for over 100 years, supplying at least a quarter of our energy needs in that time.
In the minds of many Polish politicians and the majority of the public, shale gas is not so much an economic windfall, or a new industry promising employment, or an alternative source of fossil fuels, but a mythological weapon against a mythological enemy, a gargantuan pepper spray against the bad Russian bear.
The UK government's decision to resume fracking has been welcomed by the oil industry, and widely lambasted by environmental campaigners. But to a large extent the debate about the potential of shale gas in this country has completely missed the point.
Osborne can give himself a pat on the back - the Autumn Statement was a tricky job, well done. Of course, that doesn't let the Chancellor entirely off the hook. There are still threats to his prospects of eventual success.
Shale gas extractions offers tantalising prospects but any rush to get there without taking the necessary precautions could lead us to repent at leisure.
Using more gas is not only consistent with our green objectives, it reinforces them.
The controversial method of drilling for gas, known as "fracking", has been given the go-ahead despite causing two earth tremors in the UK last year. ...
