An anti-fracking petition claiming to have 75,000 signatures that was handed to Lancashire County Council by Friends of the Earth only contained 23,624 names. A mere 31% of the figure claimed..

The bare faced porkies were uncovered by diligent planning officers who were little suspicious that the “75,000” people claiming to oppose fracking didn’t bother to write signatures or addresses.

By the by, Friends of the Earth received £55,523 from Department for International Development last financial year…