A BODY which manages a national park is set to send the Government an unequivocal message that some types of fracking must not be granted the same planning leeway as home extensions.

Members of the North York Moors National Park Authority will meet next week to consider its formal response to a consultation announced in May by Business Secretary Greg Clark to help create “the world’s most environmentally robust onshore shale gas sector”.

Mr Clark said steps such as treating non-hydraulic fracturing shale gas exploration schemes as “permitted development” could streamline the “disappointingly slow” planning process by enabling firms to bypass the need for permission from local planning authorities.

Petrochemicals giant Ineos, which earlier this year refused to rule out planning to frack under the North York Moors, says delays in exploiting shale gas are causing Britain to become overly-dependent on imports from Russia and the Middle East.

An officer’s report to the national park authority suggests its response to the Government should be that “a balance needs to be struck between timely decision making and the need for appropriate scrutiny of development proposals at a local level”.

It warns the Government’s intention not to apply a new permitted development right in national parks “may not be maintained” and that such schemes outside the national park boundary could give rise to potential impacts within it.

Jim Bailey, chairman of the authority, said allowing fracking firms to avoid getting planning consent would be “an unpopular step for the public” and local planning authorities were best placed to consider the issues.

He said: “All planning authorities and certainly national parks should have consideration of these matters within their boundaries. We have just  been through a process of developing a local mineral planning strategy that has involved a lot of work and a huge amount of public consultation that demonstrates the constraints that should be applied.”