The fracking industry has had a shot in the arm as the government puts local councils on notice that ministers will step in to override any “slow and confused” decisions on shale drilling applications. A fast-track process taking effect from Thursday means the communities secretary will for the first time systematically assess all shale oil and gas applications to make sure councils rule on them quickly. If [local councils] delay rulings or repeatedly knock back drilling applications that ministers deem reasonable, they will risk the communities secretary stepping in to overrule them. --Pilita Clark and Andrew Bounds, Financial Times, 13 August 2015