Green Party Burnley says 'no fracking in our back yard' as Reform UK pledge to lift ban
The Burnley Green Party has warned that any future attempts to introduce shale gas fracking in East Lancashire would threaten the town’s unique industrial heritage while offering nothing but false promises to local workers.
With the M65 corridor identified by government surveys as “particularly rich in shale gas”, Burnley remains a prime target for fracking companies should the current UK moratorium be lifted.
Local Greens are demanding that Burnley Council and Lancashire County Council commit to permanent protection from hydraulic fracturing, a technique to extract natural gas from deep underground shale rock by pumping high-pressure fluid into a well to create cracks, which release the trapped fuel.
Reform-led Lancashire County Council said just last week that it had no plans for fracking to return to Lancashire despite it being a wider party promise to explore options nationwide.
Despite those assurances, Burnley’s Green Party is still concerned about any future changes to the current ban.
Democratic rights under attack
The Greens highlighted Reform UK’s plans to override local consent for underground drilling.
Cliviger with Worsthorne Green Party Coun. Jack Launer, Executive member for housing, health and culture, and leader of the Green Group, said: “As usual, Reform pick the option most damaging for local people despite pretending to have the voters interests at heart.
“How can ripping up nature and green spaces in Burnley be something the town wants? Hopefully this own goal will make voters listen and stop focusing on flags. Earthquakes and pollution aren't patriotic.”
Affan Burki, Burnley Green Party chairperson, added: “They want to drill under our property without asking permission. That's not economic development – that's corporate theft. Every Burnley resident should have the right to say no to drilling beneath their home, their children's school, or their local park.
“We demand that Burnley Council follows the lead of councils across Lancashire and declares the borough a fracking-free zone.”
Heritage under threat
Trinity Green Party Coun. Martyn Hunt, vice-chairman of the council’s Development Control Committee, stated: “Burnley prides itself on its rolling hills, the miles of green and pleasant lands surrounding it and its closeness to, and relationship with, our stunning natural landscape and rich habitats.
“To then violate that with fracking wells, bringing pollution, tremors and a visual blight on our doorstep would be absolutely unacceptable.
This will not result in lower energy prices, long term jobs or careers for the people of Burnley – it will just line the pockets of foreign companies who avoid paying tax in the UK.”
Affan Burki, added: “Burnley's industrial heritage makes us uniquely vulnerable to fracking damage. Our canal system carries boats above the town centre, our railway runs on Victorian viaducts, and our ground is honeycombed with unmapped mine workings from centuries of coal extraction.”
‘Eleven jobs doesn’t justify industrial devastation’
The Burnley Green Party highlighted independent research showing fracking delivers minimal long-term employment while causing maximum disruption.
Affan Burki explained: "They promise thousands of jobs but Friends of the Earth research shows Lancashire fracking sites create just 11 permanent jobs each after three years. Meanwhile, we'd face up to 80 fracking pads across East Lancashire, with constant heavy lorry traffic, toxic chemicals, and heavy air pollution.
"This isn't economic development—it's industrial colonisation by outside corporations who'll take the profits and leave us with the mess."
Burnley's ‘real Industrial Revolution’
Instead of “destructive extraction”, Burnley Greens propose a genuine green industrial renaissance building on the town's manufacturing heritage:
Immediate Green Jobs Programme:
Advanced Manufacturing Hub – multi-million-pound investment in precision engineering and green technology training centre. Wind Turbine Manufacturing – utilising Burnley's metalworking expertise for renewable energy components.
Heat Pump Production – local assembly and installation training programmes. Retrofit Revolution – community-owned insulation and energy efficiency cooperatives.
Community Energy Ownership:
Local wind and solar projects with profits staying in Burnley. Community energy cooperatives reducing residents' bills.Green hydrogen production using renewable electricity.
Transport Manufacturing: Electric bus and commercial vehicle assembly. Railway component manufacturing building on town’s transport heritage. E-bike production hub for the North West.
“Our textile mills powered the British Empire through innovation and hard work,” said Burki. “Now we can lead Britain's green industrial revolution the same way but this time the Burnley workers and communities will own the wealth we create, not distant shareholders.
“From cotton mills to wind turbines, from steam power to solar panels – that's the real industrial revolution Burnley needs. We want real jobs with real wages, bringing real change for real people.”
Burnley Green Party is now calling on residents to contact Burnley Borough Council demanding a fracking ban.
In the event of a Reform UK government reintroducing fracking, the Burnley Green Party will hold public meetings across all wards to discuss the fracking threat and green alternatives.