The Scottish Government has backed a ban of fracking Scotland.

Energy Minister Paul Wheelhouse told the told Scottish Parliament on Tuesday that “fracking cannot and will not take place in Scotland”.

The Government said it was “cautious (and) evidence-led” in its approach to ruling on fracking.

It conducted a four-month public consultation which received over 60,000 responses.

Of those respondents “approximately 99% of the consultation responses were opposed to fracking and fewer than 1% were in favour”, the Government said.

Environmental groups have welcomed the decision, while groups including the Scottish Conservatives said the country will miss out on a “much-needed” economic boost from not pursuing fracking.

What is fracking?

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a process where narrow holes are drilled deep into the ground (vertically and then horizontally) before a pipe is passed into the hole.

High-pressure water, sand and chemicals are pumped through the pipe to cause mini-fractures in the earth to release shale gas. The gas is then passed back onto the earth’s surface to be collected in tanks. The gas collected is brought to refineries to be used as natural gas or propane by energy companies.