New polling from Savanta Comres reveals 44% of Brits are in favour of ending the temporary ban on shale gas extraction across the UK, with 36% opposed and 20% undecided. 41% of UK adults also think the government’s Net Zero targets have weakened Britain’s energy security and should be “reconsidered” following the invasion of Ukraine. Is it any wonder? Energy bills are through the roof, and we’re still relying on Russia for most of our coal…

The new figures also fly in the face of the received wisdom often spouted in Westminster. In February, just before the war in Ukraine, Zac Goldsmith claimed it was “hard to overstate just how unpopular fracking is with the British public”:

It’s hard to overstate just how unpopular fracking is with the British public. The last BEIS attitude tracker showed only 18% support (76% supported onshore wind). People do not want large-scale industrialisation of the British countryside. /3

— Zac Goldsmith (@ZacGoldsmith) February 12, 2022

Now a majority are in favour, BEIS has commissioned a review into whether the ban can be lifted, and Kwasi Kwarteng even admitted the government needed to “explore all possible domestic energy sources” to solve the crisis. Drill baby, drill…