Star date: 6th July 2016

RED LINE DRAWN AT GREATER MANCHESTER FRACKING PLANNING CONFERENCE

"Fracking, as well as being a toxic nightmare, is a new fossil fuel and that's why we are here. That's why fracking is our red line..." Martin Porter, Greenpeace

Campaigner, Tina Rothery, who is currently being sued by shale gas company Cuadrilla, today drew the links between the Chilcot Report and the Government's attitude to fracking at a protest outside the Planning and Environment conference in Manchester, sponsored by the pro-fracking United Kingdom Onshore Oil and Gas...

"You look at situations like that and say that our government lies" she said, referring to Iraq "...at what point can you call this a democracy?"

Full details here...

"Come to Manchester, frackers, and we'll tell it to you like the Stone Roses, it's fool's gold and we ain't having it..." Jenny Ross

Anti-fracking campaigners from Salford and all over Greater Manchester and beyond today literally made a red line outside the Planning and Environment conference in Sackville Street, Manchester, which was sponsored by the pro-fracking United Kingdom Onshore Oil and Gas (UKOOG).

The red line mirrored a similar protest at the Climate Summit in Paris last December and Martin Porter, from Manchester Greenpeace Network, explained why it happened after the Agreement between countries was signed...

"Politicians came out and said `We have solved the problem of climate change' and that we can all go home and forget about it" he said "We weren't surprised when, before the ink was dry, the Government announced new fracking licences covering large chunks of the north of England and Greater Manchester."

He added that there were five red lines drawn in Paris, the last of which was for a `drastic and immediate cut in emissions'... "That meant no more new fossil fuels, and fracking, as well as being a toxic nightmare, is a new fossil fuel. That's why we are here. That's why fracking is our red line."

Making a plea for the use of renewable energies like wind, solar and wave power, Martin told campaigners that "The fracking boom in the USA has led to a methane cloud that is visible from space...Methane is thirty times more toxic for climate change than carbon dioxide and every part of the US natural gas system leaks...We know that there are alternatives but as long as we carry on with shale gas they are not being looked at."

His points were underlined by Tina Rothery, of Frack Free Lancashire,who is currently being sued for £50,000 by fracking company Cuadrilla, and facing jail for occupying one of its sites. She drew the parallels between today's Chilcot Report and the attitude towards shale gas extraction by this government...

"The Chilcot Inquiry is out today; it's cost us fortunes, has taken seven years and at no point is there anything saying how we can apologise to all the dead people and for all the suffering" she said "You look at situations like that and say that our government lies; our government acts without our intervention, and at what point can you call this a democracy?

"The Government overrules the people" she added "We have continually objected for five years, we are every bit as valid and loud as the anti Iraq war campaign, and the Government is every bit as deaf and chooses not to listen.

"We live in a so-called democracy where we should be able to ask our councillors to research the documents we do, but they don't" she explained "We should be able to ask our MPs to be our voice in Parliament but they are not; we should be able to ask our Prime Minister and governing party to at least listen to our concerns or even be willing to debate with us, but they don't."

Tina insisted that the summit inside the Manchester Conference Centre, aimed at council planners*, wasn't a balanced event for delegates, with only one speaker presenting another side to the pro-fracking argument...

"Other than that the whole day is UKOOG industry-funded; there isn't a hope that it's going to be a fair hearing" she said "As with most things in this country these days, all the fair hearings and honesty happen on the streets not in these buildings."

Both Tina and fellow speaker, Jenny Ross, of Frack Free Greater Manchester, scoffed at the fall in share values of fracking companies like Cuadrilla and IGas...

"Come to Manchester, frackers, and we'll tell it to you like the Stone Roses...it's fool's gold and we ain't having it..." she said "The money should be invested in renewables instead."

Next week, Wednesday July 13th, Bury Council is debating a motion against fracking in its area and the Campaign Against Climate Change has called for people to go and show their support outside Bury Town Hall at 6pm and inside the meeting from 6:30pm

* For full details of the conference see previous Salford Star article – click here