BBC News - Fracking approval being considered for first time in four years

Councillors in North Yorkshire will on Friday consider whether to approve fracking in England for the first time since a ban on the technique was lifted in 2012.

They will consider plans by Third Energy to frack a well at a site near the village of Kirby Misperton in the district of Ryedale.

Campaigners say approval would set a "dangerous precedent".

But the company says its operations are no risk to people or the environment.

Fracking involves injecting water, sand and chemicals at high pressure into rocks deep underground to unlock trapped gas.

The process was banned in 2011 after the shale gas firm Cuadrilla caused minor earth tremors when it fracked a well in Lancashire.

'Safe'

Third Energy has licences to produce gas in North Yorkshire and offshore in the North Sea.

In 2013 it drilled an exploratory well near the village of Kirby Misperton, close to the North York Moors National Park.

It now wants to frack the well to test whether it can unlock shale gas from rocks up to 10,000ft (3,000m) underground.

"All we want to do is test whether gas will flow from an existing well using hydraulic fracturing," says Rasik Valand, chief executive of Third Energy.

"What we are planning is safe. There is no risk to the environment or the public."

Protests

But there has been strong opposition to the plan from the local community and environmentalists.

Hundreds of anti-fracking protesters are expected to gather outside the council meeting in Northallerton on Friday.

The council has received more than 4,000 representations, the vast majority against the proposal.

Green campaigners fear that approval here would open the door for fracking elsewhere.

"It risks setting a dangerous precedent for Britain," says Craig Bennett, chief executive of Friends of the Earth.

"We strongly urge councillors to reject this planning application which is clearly deeply unpopular with the local community."

Tourism threat?

Others are concerned about the impact on the local economy as Kirby Misperton is also home to Flamingo Land, one of Yorkshire's top tourists attractions.

Image captionThere are concerns that tourist sites will see a drop in numbers if fracking is approved

"This place is beautiful," says retired bishop, the Right Reverend Graham Cray, who lives in the village. "The economy is based on tourism and agriculture. Tourists don't come to a gas field and that is what we will turn into if we get the scale of fracking that is intended."

Last year Lancashire County Council rejected Cuadrilla's plan to carry out exploratory drilling and fracking at two new sites on the Fylde.

A planning inquiry into that application took place earlier this year. A recommendation will be sent in the summer to the communities secretary for a final decision.

Final decision

The Third Energy application involves an existing site that has produced gas since the 1990s.

The well has already been drilled.

Image captionThe well head at Kirby Misperton

The shale gas produced will also be sent through a network of pipes to a nearby power station. That will avoid air pollution caused by flaring gas.

So the company expects the fracking activity to be completed within eight weeks.

The council's planning officer has recommended that the application be approved. But it is now down to the 11 councillors on the planning committee to take the final decision.

That decision may not come until Monday due to the number of people who have registered to speak at the meeting.

If approved, fracking could start by the end of the year.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change refused to comment on Third Energy's application ahead of the council meeting.

But in a statement it said: "Shale gas is a fantastic opportunity which will create jobs, boost our economy and strengthen our energy security.

"There is tough regulation in place to ensure that fracking can take place safely - now is the time to start exploration and find out just how much shale gas is there and how much we can get out of the ground."

You can follow John on Twitter at @JohnMoylanBBC

Bloomberg News - EU to Weigh Extension of Russia Sanctions, Won’t Tighten Them

The European Union will consider extending economic sanctions against Russia, but will stop short of tightening them, foreign-policy chief Federica Mogherini said.

Trade and investment curbs to punish Russia for its takeover of Crimea and intervention in eastern Ukraine in 2014 are set to lapse on July 31 and require a unanimous 28-nation vote to be prolonged.

“We will have a political discussion in the coming weeks with the member states on the rollover of existing sanctions,” Mogherini told reporters in Brussels on Friday. “There is no discussion at the moment on increasing the level of sanctions.”

Countries including Italy, Greece, Hungary and Austria have expressed discomfort with the penalties, though didn’t stand in the way of an extension last year. Opponents of sanctions have gotten quieter since then, as Russia continues to back the eastern Ukraine rebels and build up its military.

by James G Neuger

BBC News - EU exit to see house values fall, say estate agents

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A UK exit from the European Union could wipe thousands of pounds off house values over the next three years, estate agents have claimed.

Homeowners in London could lose as much as £7,500, while homes elsewhere in the UK could lose £2,300, the National Association of Estate Agents said.

The report, jointly commissioned by the Association of Residential Letting Agents, said rents could also fall.

The Vote Leave campaign said first-time buyers would welcome a drop in prices.

The study suggests that prices in London would be hit by a slump in demand from foreign buyers, particularly those from EU countries.

In 2013, 17% of homes sold in the middle of the capital went to EU nationals.

If the UK did not maintain free movement of labour after a vote to leave, the research claims the population of the UK could fall by more than a million people, as EU workers return home.

A separate research note from the ratings agency Moody's said a leave vote could be good news for first-time buyers.

"First-time buyers would benefit from lower competition for housing, as house price and rental inflation would slow down if immigration is curbed," said Gaby Trinkaus, a vice president and senior analyst at Moody's.

How would an EU exit affect average house prices?
Year	Remain in EU	Leave EU
2016	£278,500	£277,600
2017	£290,800	£288,900
2018	£303,000	£300,800
London
2016	£536,000	£533,700
2017	£564,500	£559,300
2018	£599,200	£591,700
source: NAEA/ ARLA/ CEBR

Rents

The research - carried out by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) - suggested a British exit could reduce the total value of UK housing by as much as £26.5bn by 2018.

As far as rents are concerned, it calculated that the impact would be minimal in the first two or three years.

EU nationals living in the UK are more likely to be renters than homeowners, it said.

So if fewer were to come to the UK in the longer term, country-wide rents could be impacted "more severely".

However, landlords said that if rents fell too far, many might sell up.

"If demand eases to such an extent that landlords cannot recuperate costs, we'll likely see a mass exit from the market, which would then just have the opposite effect on demand as supply falls - and we'd be back to square one," said David Cox, managing director of the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).

The Vote Leave campaign said that both renters and first-time buyers would benefit from a UK exit.

"The biggest pressure on housing supply is immigration which has made buying your first home and even renting unaffordable for many," said Matthew Elliott, chief executive of Vote Leave .

However the chancellor, George Osborne, has previously warned that first-time buyers would see higher mortgage payments in the event of a British exit.

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Construction

The report also warns that a vote to leave could lead to fewer new homes being built, because of a shortage of construction workers.

About 5% of construction workers in England and Wales were born in other EU countries, according to the 2011 census.

If such workers could no longer travel so freely to the UK, estate agents say the skills shortage might be severe.

"We simply wouldn't have the resource to put the bricks and mortar together," said Mark Hayward, managing director of the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA)

"It has the potential to have a very damaging effect on the future housing market."

By Brian Milligan

Bloomberg News - Brexit May Delay Fed Rate Rise in Bloomberg Intelligence Model

U.K. voters may hamper the Federal Reserve’s ability to raise interest rates this summer, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

A decision by the British electorate to withdraw from the European Union in a June 23 referendum could delay the next tightening move from U.S. policy makers by about three months, according to an economic model designed by analysts Jamie Murray, Carl Riccadonna and Dan Hanson.

That’s because so-called Brexit would hurt the U.K. economy, imposing a drag on U.S. exports and gross domestic product as well as triggering possible reverberations in financial markets, the analysts said in a report released on Wednesday.

“Should Britain vote to leave the EU on June 23, the implications for the U.S. economic outlook would be modest, but could prevent the Fed from hiking in July,” Murray, Riccadonna and Hanson wrote. With the U.S. presidential election “dominating the agenda for the remainder of the year, that could put two hikes in 2016 beyond the Fed’s reach.”

Investors see roughly a 12 percent chance of an interest-rate increase from the Fed when its officials convene in June and a 28 percent probability that the benchmark will be higher by the July meeting. Bloomberg Intelligence is forecasting a hike at the July gathering, but sees later in the year as more likely in a Brexit scenario.

Even so, two regional Fed Bank presidents said on Tuesday that two rate moves may still be warranted in 2016, as the economy continues to expand and inflation picks up. While one of those, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan, said action at “upcoming meetings” will be appropriate, he also said the Brexit vote would be a factor in June’s Federal Open Market Committee decision.

by Simon Kennedy

BBC News - UK inflation rate falls on cheaper air fares

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The UK's inflation rate fell in April for the first time since September, largely because of cheaper air fares after the Easter holidays.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the rate, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index, fell to 0.3%.

The ONS said the main causes were falls in the prices of air fares, vehicles, clothing and social housing rents.

The Bank of England said last week that it expected inflation to increase in the second half of the year.

By far the largest downward effect in April came from air transport, with prices falling by 14.2%, compared with a rise of 4.5% between the same two months last year.

This was influenced by the timing of the Easter holidays in March. Fare prices increased dramatically between February and March this year and then fell sharply in April.

The price of clothing and footwear also fell as retailers dropped prices to try to revive sales hit by last month's cold weather.

An alternative inflation measure, the Retail Prices Index, which is still used to index some rents and pensions, also fell from an annual rate of 1.6% in March to 1.3% in April.

Meanwhile core inflation, which strips out energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, fell to 1.2%, compared with economists' expectations for 1.4%.

Interest rates

Last week, the governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, had to write his sixth letter to the Chancellor George Osborne explaining why CPI inflation was still below the Bank's 2% target.

In it he said: "The underlying causes of the below-target inflation of the past year and a half have been: sharp falls in commodity prices, the past appreciation of sterling, and to a lesser degree the subdued pace of domestic cost growth."

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted last week to keep interest rates unchanged at the record low of 0.5%. The Bank is not expected to raise rates until at least next year.

Martin Beck, senior economic advisor to the EY Item Club, said: "We are likely to see inflation remain close to current rates until the latter part of the year, when the base effects associated with last winter's collapse in the oil price will begin to kick in and finally drag the CPI measure above 1%.

Such a benign outlook is likely to stay the MPC's hand until well into next year."

In a separate report, the ONS said that there had been a surge in house prices as landlords rushed to buy before higher stamp duty was imposed.

UK average house prices increased by 9.0% over the year to March 2016, up from 7.6% in the year to February 2016.

The pound lost about half a cent against the dollar immediately after the figures were released, but then recovered to stand at $1.4483, a gain on the day of more than 0.5%.

BBC News - CBI cuts forecast amid Brexit 'dark cloud of uncertainty'

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A "dark cloud of uncertainty" over global growth and the outcome of the EU vote is chilling growth, says the CBI.

The lobby group cut its economic growth forecasts and says the economy will grow by 2% in 2016 and 2017, down from a previous forecast of 2.3% and 2.1%.

It said Brexit uncertainty was having a "tangible impact" on spending plans.

But the forecast is based on the assumption that "we stay in - it's not a forecast of the effects of Brexit," said CBI boss Carolyn Fairbairn.

She said: "A dark cloud of uncertainty is looming over global growth, particularly around weakening emerging markets and the outcome of the EU referendum, which is chilling some firms' plans to invest."

"At present, the economic signals are mixed - we are in an unusually uncertain period."

Household spending will be the main driver of economic growth.

The first rise in interest rates will not now be for another year, it said.

It forecasts the first move will be in the second quarter of 2017, to 0.75%, according to the business group's forecast.

Interest rates have been held at 0.5% since 2009.

'Widespread'

Ms Fairburn told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I was with a building society in Wales recently where investment decisions and housing decisions were being postponed.

"I've been talking to advertisers, broadcasters who are seeing slowdowns in the advertising market and some construction companies, so pretty widespread across the economy people are waiting to see what the outcome will be."

Asked if she agreed with the Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, that Britain could go into a technical recession if Britain left the European Union, she said most economists would agree there would be a shock to the economy.

"How long and how deep will depend on how quickly we do trade deals.

"The process of leaving is very complicated - it's likely to take a long time and trade deals are hard to do so our own forecast with PWC does also show the possibility of a technical recession. So yes we would absolutely agree with it, it's a significant shock."

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Pay pressure

Separately, growth in wages is likely to remain "stuck in the slow lane" until the end of the decade, according to a survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

It suggests that pay will rise by 1.7% in the next year, as the "jobs-rich, pay-poor" economy continues.

Employees are unlikely to see much of a boost to their pay, the HR body, said after surveying more than 1,000 businesses.

Since the financial crisis, pay growth has struggled to keep up with rising prices. Last year, wage increases did outstrip the rate of inflation but levels are still historically low.

The latest figures are due out this week.

Low inflation, available skilled workers and a lack of productivity growth are working together to reduce the economic pressure for employers to pay their staff more, the CIPD said.

At the same time, firms are juggling increased costs to employing people.

'Go-slow'

Mark Beatson, chief economist at the CIPD, said: "The UK is now in its eighth year of productivity 'go-slow'... employers are having to manage the consequences of government-imposed increases to the cost of employing people.

"The National Living Wage and roll-out of pensions auto-enrolment were introduced to improve the living standards of low-paid employees, but this can only happen without significant job losses if the productivity of low-paid employees also increases."

The new mandatory National Living Wage (NLW) came into force in April. It requires employers to pay workers aged 25 and over at least £7.20 an hour.

Mr Beatson said that it would be no surprise if companies chose easier options - such as reducing hours, benefits and pay rises as a result. He called on the government to give more practical advice and support for businesses.

BBC News - Anti-corruption summit: Cameron plans to name foreign property owners

Foreign firms that own property in the UK will have to declare their assets publicly in a bid to stamp out money-laundering, the government says.

Companies will have to be on a new register if they hold property or want to compete for government contracts.

The move comes as Prime Minister David Cameron attempts to lead a wider effort to crack down on global corruption.

World leaders are gathering in London for a summit aimed at stepping up action to tackle the problem.

Funds 'siphoned'

Downing Street said Mr Cameron's plans for a register of foreign companies owning UK property would include those who already owned property in the UK as well as those seeking to buy.

It said the register would mean "corrupt individuals and countries will no longer be able to move, launder and hide illicit funds through London's property market, and will not benefit from our public funds".

It said foreign companies owned about 100,000 properties in England and Wales and that more than 44,000 of these were in London.

Tax havens

Mr Cameron will also say that some of Britain's overseas territories and crown dependencies will join 33 other countries in agreeing to share automatically their own registers of company ownership, information that will be accessible to the police.

Matthew Hancock, Cabinet Office Minister, told the BBC: "It does not matter where in the world your company is registered if you own property in London or sell things to government, as part of government procurement, then you have to declare the beneficial ownership, in other words the ultimate ownership of the company."

Mr Cameron will also announce plans for a new anti-corruption co-ordination centre in London and a wider corporate offence for executives who fail to prevent fraud or money laundering inside their companies.

"Corruption is the cancer at the heart of so many of our problems in the world today," Mr Cameron wrote in the Guardian ahead of the summit.

"It destroys jobs and holds back growth, costing the world economy billions of pounds every year.

"It traps the poorest in the most desperate poverty as corrupt governments around the world siphon off funds and prevent hard-working people from getting the revenues and benefits of growth that are rightfully theirs."

The head of the Cayman Islands' main finance organisation has questioned whether a public register of the owners of businesses in offshore centres would be effective.

Jude Scott, the head of Cayman Finance, told the BBC's economics editor, Kamal Ahmed, that they and the British Virgin Islands had already agreed to share such details with tax authorities and law enforcement bodies to tackle tax evasion and money laundering.

Mr Scott said the register would only be really effective if it was global and all G20 and international financial centres took part.

In an interview with the Financial Times on Wednesday, Wayne Panton, the Cayman Islands' minister of financial services, said a public register would also only work if the information was verified.

He said the Cayman Islands had required company providers to collect and verify information for the past 15 years, but he ruled out putting it into the public domain.

'Battling hard'

The anti-corruption summit is being hailed as the first of its kind, bringing together governments, business and civil society.

It is being hosted by Mr Cameron. No full list of those attending the Lancaster House summit has been published, but participants will include US Secretary of State John Kerry, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

No detailed agenda has been made public, but organisers say it will agree ways to "expose corruption so there is nowhere to hide".

The summit has already been overshadowed by controversy after it emerged that Mr Cameron had described Nigeria and Afghanistan as "fantastically corrupt".

He made the comment while talking to the Queen at Buckingham Palace and his words were caught on camera.

The PM later said the countries' leaders were "battling hard" to tackle the problem.

Tackling corruption

Asked ahead of the anti-corruption conference in London if Nigeria was "fantastically corrupt", President Buhari, who came to power last year on a promise to fight corruption, replied: "Yes."

Mr Buhari, speaking at a separate event hosted by the Commonwealth, said he was more interested in the return of stolen assets held in British banks, adding that corruption in Nigeria was endemic and his government was committed to fighting it.

Mr Hancock defended Mr Cameron's remarks.

"He (President Buhari) said the Prime Minister was telling the truth and the reason the President of Nigeria has come to this summit is because he is fully committed to tackling corruption in Nigeria. Indeed he won an election based on tackling corruption".

Mr Hancock said it was up to countries such as the UK to work with developing nations to make sure money taken from them is not hidden in assets in capital cities such as London.