AN MP said concerns about how fracking will affect Lancashire ‘cannot be dismissed’.

Hyndburn MP Graham Jones said debate was needed over whether fracking is safe and whether payment should be levied for community benefit.

He said: “At a recent Lancashire MPs meeting it was suggested that in Lancashire alone total reserves stand at possible £3trillion over a 40-year lifespan and expected extraction rate of up to 10 per cent.

“Oil and gas extraction rates historically have tended to be under projected as new technologies enabled higher extraction rates. If the figures are correct that would see a significant community benefit.

Mr Jones said a long term wealth fund for Lancashire, rather than fixed and separate payments to district and county councils, was a serious option.

But he added: “Geological and environmental studies must continue to ensure that fracking is safe, that it it can be managed in terms of social and environmental impacts.”