Labour is to announce that it will ban fracking if it wins the next general election.
Shadow energy and climate change secretary Barry Gardiner will tell the party’s annual conference in Liverpool that a Labour government would introduce an “outright ban” on the controversial process of extracting gas from shale rock.
He is expected to say: “Today I am announcing that the next Labour government will ban fracking in the UK.
“Fracking locks us into an energy infrastructure that is based on fossil fuels long after our country needs to have moved to renewables.
“The next Labour government will back the clean technologies of the future.
“We will consult with our colleagues in industry and the trade unions about the best way to transition our energy industry to create the vital jobs and apprenticeships we are going to need for the UK’s low-carbon future.”
To date, Labour has called for a moratorium on fracking.
The party believes the new policy provides regulatory certainty for investors about Labour’s direction of travel on clean energy.
Labour has never believed the returns from shale gas are likely to be so compelling as to override concerns about fracking for the environment and its impact on local communities.
Gary Smith, the GMB union’s Scotland secretary, said ruling out fracking was “madness”.
He told the Press Association that the UK will be dependent on gas for decades, pointing out that the first shipment of fracked gas will be arriving in Scotland on Tuesday.
“We will have to confront the fact that we will be buying gas from hangmen, henchmen and head-choppers. We don’t think that’s ethical. We have world-class regulators and world-leading standards in terms of monitoring. Ruling it out now is madness.”
Caroline Lucas, co-leader of the Green Party, said: “Labour’s commitment to a fracking ban is extremely welcome.
“Not only does fracking pose risks to local communities, but drilling for gas under our countryside risks undermining our climate change commitments too.
“It’s now down to every Labour politician, from local councillors, to assembly members and MPs, to oppose any plans for fracking in their areas.
“We stand at a crossroads for Britain’s energy future – and we urge Labour to choose a future where power is in the hands of the many, not the few – and where Britain puts to use its most abundant resources: the sun, sea and wind.”
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