Dame Vivienne Westwood hits out at fracking

FASHION designer Dame Vivienne Westwood has spoken out against hydraulic fracturing as she joined anti-fracking protesters at their camp in West Sussex.

Vivienne Westwood with an anti-fracking sign at Balcombe. Picture: PA

She marched past energy firm Cuadrilla’s exploratory oil drilling site in Balcombe, which has been the focal point of fracking protests.

Up to 1,000 people are expected to join a six-day Reclaim the Power Camp near the village to highlight opposition to the controversial extraction method.

Westwood called for a public debate on fracking as she believed it could store up trouble financially and environmentally for generations to come.

She said: “There has been no debate. They are trying to rush this thing through, for what?

“It’s not going to go away. We don’t know whether it will do good or bad. I’m sure it’s bad and the only people who are going to benefit from it is this energy company who are associated with the government.

“They all have vested interests. They just do it to boost the companies. It will never go into our bills.”