Oscar winning actress Emma Thompson stands in solidarity with Lancashire's anti-frackers
Last updated 21st Mar 2018
Oscar-winning actor and writer Emma Thompson joined dozens of Lancashire women on a peaceful walk and silent protest at the controversial Cuadrilla site in Preston New Road.
The Nanny McPhee star is in Preston to show solidarity with local women who have been opposing Cuadrilla’s plan to frack in the area for years.
Lancashire county council voted against the controversial drilling technique in 2015 but was subsequently overruled by the government.
The protest march, led by women in white clothes, started from Maple Farm and arrived at the Preston New Road site, where a 15-minute silent protest took place followed by speeches from Emma Thompson and other women.
The demonstration took place at a delicate time for the fracking industry. Seven years after their first attempt to frack in Lancashire, Cuadrilla said they’re gearing up to start fracking in 2018. However, the shale industry has also been facing a series of setback right across the country.
In Yorkshire, Third Energy were forced to put their fracking development on hold as they await the outcome of a government probe into their finances. Seven fracking companies have seen their plans rejected by local council since the start of the year, while the government has revised down its forecasts for the industry’s development in the near future.
Joining the march, Emma Thompson said:
"It’s so inspiring to be here with these brave and determined women who have been opposing fracking for years. They speak for a community whose voice was first ignored then shouted down by the Westminster government.
"And what's happening across the country shows these women were right. Seven years from the first frack, all we have are a pile of broken promises and some holes in the ground. Council after council have been rejecting fracking, and projects have been delayed. The future of this industry is so uncertain ministers have all but stopped talking about it. Fracking is a dud - it's time to move on.
"Ministers should stop wasting time and energy imposing fracking and its imaginary benefits on local communities and focus instead on the real jobs and investment clean energy sources like offshore wind can create."
A Cuadrilla spokesperson said:
“We respect the right to lawful protest and hope that, as with other activists involved, the visitors from London ensure that local residents and commuters are not inconvenienced by any road blockages and unlawful behaviour.