Scarborough Mayor Backs Fracking Principle But Opposes Burniston Gas Rig Plan

The mayor of Scarborough has stated he is not fundamentally opposed to fracking if it avoids impacting local communities, despite recently opposing a controversial gas drilling rig in Burniston.

The mayor of Scarborough has stated he is not opposed to fracking in principle, suggesting that energy companies could go ahead if it avoids impacting local communities.

Reform UK's Councillor Thomas Murray, the town mayor, made the comments just weeks after North Yorkshire Council refused plans for a controversial gas drilling rig near the town.

Last year, the Reform-led Scarborough Town Council voted unanimously to oppose Europa Oil and Gas's plan for a 38-metre gas rig in the village of Burniston.

At the time, the town council expressed its full and unwavering support for local residents in their opposition to the proposed development.

Councillor Murray explained the town council's position:

"As a town council we voiced our opposition to Europa's proposal in Burniston, on the basis that it didn't have the community behind it and it was causing undue anxiety and stress for homeowners."

Reform UK has stated nationally that it would lift a ban on fracking, which was originally introduced due to concerns about earthquakes and environmental impacts. When asked how the town council's stance squared with this national policy, Councillor Murray said:

"If you look at Reform's policy, it is with local consent and on that basis, that proposal in Burniston didn't have local consent. It was really close to the town. I would say, if it was out further away from society, where it is not going to affect the local community, then frack ahead."

Local campaign group Frack Free Coastal Communities has heavily criticised the remarks.

Professor Chris Garforth, chair of the group's steering committee, said they appreciated the stance Scarborough Town Council took in opposing the planning application, noting that they joined local coastal parish and town councils to present a unified opposition that planners could not ignore.

Professor Garforth described the mayor's recent comments as a valiant attempt to square that stance with the national party line:

"However, the idea that in this country there are oil and gas reserves in places which are out further away from society, where fracking is not going to affect the local community is absurd.

All the areas where exploration licences are still in play and where companies are eyeing up the prospects if a pro-fracking government were ever to come to power are close to communities whose lives would be turned upside down if they get the go-ahead."

The proposed gas rig near Burniston and the North York Moors National Park had initially been recommended for approval by North Yorkshire Council. Planners had stated there were no material planning considerations to warrant refusal and that there would be no unacceptable adverse environmental impacts.

However, the application faced more than 1,600 objections from residents, local Member of Parliament Alison Hume, Friends of the Earth, and parish councils including Burniston, Cloughton, Newby and Scalby.

Europa's plan proposed using a proppant squeeze method, which has been likened to small-scale fracking but is allowed under current legislation. The company maintains its scheme would benefit the local economy, insists there is no loophole in the fracking moratorium, and has indicated it will appeal the refusal.

Professor Garforth said Frack Free Coastal Communities remains focused on ensuring that drilling and fracking for gas at Burniston does not happen, including contesting any appeal by Europa.

Professor Garforth added:

"Fracking is being pushed by oil and gas companies to squeeze more and more climate-wrecking fossil fuels from the rocks beneath the UK. The science is clear – this will simply accelerate our descent to environmental, economic and societal disaster. We should be investing in a more rapid transition to renewable energy."