By Bagehot

THE BRITISH debate about shale gas extraction has made headlines today, following the publication of a government-commissioned study suggesting that the unconventional drilling technique can safely be tested further, despite apparently causing two small earthquakes near the northern resort town of Blackpool. The domestic argument is already trundling along familiar tramlines. Environmental campaign groups and left-wing newspapers have expressed concern, arguing that it would be better to focus on renewable energy sources. Right-wing newspapers have accused green activists of having a “general hostility to fossil fuels”.