A DORSET MP has urged the Chancellor to "slay the dragon of fracking" as local campaigners call the moratorium 'immoral'.

Applications for new shale gas drilling can now be made after confirmation from the government last month that the ban in place since November 2019 had been lifted.

There are currently seven oil and gas licences in the Dorset area.

All the onshore oil and gas licences granted in the UK can potentially be used for fracking exploration, although at the moment only a third of them are specifically licences for this.

Speaking out against the lifting, Simon Hoare, MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole, told the Commons last week: "My right honourable friend (the Chancellor) is newly empowered, and he's able to slay many dragons, could he slay the dragon of fracking which was not in our manifesto?"

Local environmental campaigners have also labelled the move 'immoral'.

Sara Pascoe from campaign group Save Our Shores said: "I'm horrified and dismayed, it is just immoral to continue with any further fossil fuel extraction of any kind and fracking is one of the worst methods.

"Everyone from the Secretary General of the UN to all illustrious and very knowledgeable scientists, all voices are clamouring for us to stop extracting more fossil fuels.

"It is frightening and ridiculous and surreal that our government is working to hurry our own demise as a species. It's absolutely gobsmacking.

"When MPs say that fracking will help with the cost of living crisis and it would drive down energy costs, it's complete and utter nonsense.

"It is anywhere from five to 10 years between starting any of these wells or fracking projects and getting a drop, so we're talking about a real lag. The vast majority of the product is exported, so the only profits go to the company. "Fracking is just a fairy tale or dream of the oil industry and it just has to do with profit.

"In Dorset the deposits that remain are really quite low now. These deposits are really ageing out.

"They are sticking the straw down and sucking out the last bits and there would be a fervent furor and work to halt any such applications.

"But whether or not the local council responds to the wants, desires and requests of its citizens seems to really be in question.

"It just seems like our democracy is quite broken on top of the other challenges."