Liberal Democrat MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale Tim Farron was one of just 52 MP’s to vote for a moratorium on fracking yesterday in the House of Commons. Tim has also welcomed the news that the Government agreed to protect the National Parks from fracking.

The amendments were part of the bigger Infrastructure Bill containing a range of other infrastructure measures including a cycling strategy and planning reforms. The Infrastructure Bill received an unopposed third reading and will now return to the Lords for further legislative scrutiny.

In the debate about fracking, Energy and Climate Change Minister Amber Rudd told the House of Commons that the Government had “agreed an outright ban on fracking in National Parks, sites of special interest and Areas of Natural Beauty”.

The Government had previously said it could allow fracking in those areas “in exceptional circumstances”. This has been a concern for local people and MP’s like Tim Farron.

Tim Farron said:

“I have been sceptical about fracking ever since I started to read the evidence on it. My biggest concern is that it is another source of fossil fuel at a time when we should be stepping down our usage of them. I believe that we should be harnessing green energy, like hydro and tidal power, which has major potential in Cumbria.”