Senior ministerial aides hit out at consequences of fracking Mr Cameron is expected to face mounting opposition from backbenchers in constituencies where fracking could take place. Ben Wallace, the MP for Lancaster and Wyre and an aide to Ken Clarke, the Minister Without Portfolio, has also hit out at the "risible" deals being offered to counties that allow fracking. Mr Wallace, suggested that opposition to fracking will grow and could "delay" shale gas exploitation unless councils are given a far greater proportion of revenue by drilling companies. Currently the Government has an agreement with industry that 1 per cent of any revenue generated will go to the local community where drilling took place. Of that one per cent, just one-third will go to county council coffers. Although Mr Wallace supports the principle of fracking, he has written to the Prime Minister warning that the Government risks losing support for the process unless it "incentivises" local communities. "I was pleased... when the Government accepted the principle that localities affected would benefit and a percentage of revenue would go to counties," Mr Wallace said in his letter. He added: "The industry agreed figure of 1/3 of 1 per cent of revenue to counties is risible and risks delaying shale gas exploitation. It is also tiny compared to what the industry has to pay in the US and elsewhere. Mr Hollingbery's outspoken comments were made to his local newspaper in June. "Any threat to the water supply here would be utterly disastrous - every single person and business relies on that water," he said. I don't pretend to be an expert, but we do know of examples in the United States where there has been an impact on the water supply from fracking. He added: "I'm not suggesting there is any threat to the chalk acquifers of Hampshire, but - if there was - I would certainly be manning the barricades." Mr Hollingbery told The Telegraph: "There is lots to learn and I want to know more before I make any decision on this. I am very, very concerned about water quality in Hampshire and water quality generally. He added: "I'm raising concerns because there are concerns that need to be met - there's no question about that. But I'm not an expert and I do want to know a great deal more before I plump either way...if there ever is any application in our area which of course isn't certain. A number of backbenchers have in recent months made known their concerns about fracking. Eric Ollerenshaw, MP for Lancaster and Fleetwood, has warned of a "north-south divide" over fracking. "We do not want - as it looks at the moment - that the north gets the dirty end, and the south sucks up all the energy," he said. And Anne McIntosh, who chairs the Commons environment select committee, has also spoken of the "lack of knowledge of the process of fracking and the impact on the environment." She warned that the process could have an impact on house prices. The Prime Minister earlier this month insisted that people across the country must accept fracking. He said that fracking could result in cheaper energy bills for millions, tens of thousands of jobs and windfalls for communities. It comes as a top Government adviser on the process called for all companies to monitor gas emissions at all potential fracking sites in order to allay the fears of local communities. Writing in The Daily Telegraph, Professor Robert Mair, who last year chaired a panel on whether fracking should go ahead, said that "shale gas companies must play their part in building public confidence." Such baseline monitoring is vital since methane can be present in groundwater naturally. Collecting this valuable data will be the only way of keeping close track of the environmental impacts of fracking in situ," he said.