Labor will try to force a binding vote on fracking on Wednesday as Tory MPs consider backing a bid that would allow the opposition to reject a bill banning shale gas extraction.
The motion tabled by Labor for the opposition day debate is designed to make it very difficult for the government to ignore the vote or allow a mass abstention.
Liz Truss, who promised to lift the moratorium on shale gas extraction during her leadership campaign, is already facing a wall of opposition from backbench Conservatives. Dozens of MPs have written to Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg to voice their opposition and raise concerns about the public consent procedure.
Labor will try to use debate divisions to secure time in parliament for a bill to ban fracking. The binding proposal will make it harder for the government to abstain – which it routinely does to ignore opposition day motions.
The bill will be passed in one day, using a similar tactic that rebels used to pass the act preventing a no-deal Brexit, led by Labor and Conservative MPs including Oliver Letwin, Nick Bowles, Hilary Benn and Yvette Cooper.
The vote for that motion, which allowed the opposition to take control of the procurement document, led Boris Johnson to remove the whip from 21 Conservative MPs who had voted with Labour. A repeat of this risk is likely to be very worrying for anti-fracking Tory MPs.
A Labor Party source said: “Every single Conservative MP stood on a manifesto in 2019 to ban fracking and now they face a clear choice. Do they follow Liz Truss and her crumbling leadership into yet another disastrous decision, or do they oppose her in the best interests of the British people?
“We know Tory MPs are horrified that fracking is unpopular in their constituencies. They know fracking is unsafe, expensive and dangerous. We are calling on Conservative MPs to keep their promise and vote with us.
The government previously said MPs would not get a specific vote on fracking and the moratorium was lifted in a written ministerial statement.
Forcing MPs to vote against the measure would allow Labor to make gains locally in MP constituencies where there are concerns about fracking.
Some more pro-fracking MPs have been negotiating with Labor over whether to abstain or oppose the whip, although a Conservative source said Labour’s tactics of effectively seizing control of parliamentary business made rebellion more likely. a bit nice.
Ed Miliband, the shadow secretary of state for climate change, is expected to say in Wednesday’s debate that Labor will withdraw its proposal if the government secures its own vote on fracking.
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A number of key government figures have previously voiced opposition to fracking, including Cop26 president Alok Sharma, Housing Minister Lee Rowley and Cabinet Secretary Brendan Clarke-Smith.
Others who have spoken out against fracking include Richard Graham, Mark Menzies, Greg Knight, Ruth Edwards and Mark Fletcher.
“Today Conservative MPs have a simple choice: break the manifesto commitments they made to their constituents and allow the Government to impose expensive, dangerous fracking on communities that don’t want it, or support Labour’s fracking ban once forever everyone,” Miliband said ahead of the debate.
He called Truss’ plans “an unfair earthquake charter” and said Conservative MPs “must now put country above party and back Labour’s ban on fracking”.
The motion calls on the government to introduce a ban on hydraulic fracking for shale gas. He named Tuesday, November 29, as the day when the state business advantage “will not apply” and called on the Leader of the Opposition to introduce a bill on the ban.
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