§ 40. Mr. Nicholas Bakerasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement about the protection of the environment in the course of prospecting for and extracting gas and oil in rural areas.
§ Mr. MacfarlaneMost of the activities associated with the exploration for, and development of, on-shore oil and gas resources require planning permission, to which mineral planning authorities may attach any conditions which they consider necessary to protect the environment. I expect all planning applications in environmentally sensitives areas to be subject to a full and rigorous assessment.