Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will ensure that any exploitation of shale gas in the UK is (a) a substitute for, and not in addition to, imported gas and (b) does not lead to an increase in carbon emissions.

The shale gas resources beneath Britain have the potential to bolster our energy security and add new sources of home-grown supply to our real diversity of imports.

We are committed to reducing carbon emissions by 80% by 2050 and natural gas, the cleanest of fossil fuels, will help us in meeting that target. Reports[1] have shown that the carbon footprint of electricity from UK produced shale gas would likely be significantly less than coal and also lower than imported Liquefied Natural Gas.

This will be especially significant as we displace energy generation from high carbon fuels as coal.

[1] Mackay-Stone report (requested by DECC), Potential Greenhouse Gas Emissions Associated with Shale Gas Extraction and Use, Sept 2013