The Conservative Government on the brink of imploding after Suella Braverman's parting shot as crunch Commons vote descends into farce.

Hitchin MP Bim Afolami votes in favour of fracking as confusion reigns over future of Liz Truss amid deepening Tory turmoil

Confusion over 'confidence' vote after series of U-turns - with more than 40 Tories failing to back Liz Truss's government amid allegations MPs were manhandled.

There is even more confusion over whether last's night vote on fracking amounted to a motion of confidence in the government.

However, Hitchin MP Mr Afolami, once again put his career over environmental concerns by voting in favour of fracking.

Environmentalists have strongly opposed fracking, also known as hydraulic fracturing, which is a technique used to get oil and gas out of the ground. Water, sand and a cocktail of chemicals are pumped deep underground at high pressure to open up cracks (or fractures) in the rock, releasing the oil or gas trapped inside.

Greenpeace say that as reserves of oil and gas have gone down, fracking is seen as a way of extracting even more of these polluting fuels. This has led to a boom in the US, which the UK government hoped to copy.

However, in November 2019, the government called a halt to fracking in England. This was after a report concluded that the small earthquakes caused by the process cannot be controlled.

Yet, Truss's government lifted the ban last month.

What's so bad about fracking?

Fracked fuels can be even more damaging to the climate than regular oil and gas. The process of extracting these fuels risks causing pollution, harming public health and it wouldn't even bring energy bills down. Here are some of the main problems with fracking.

Greenpeace say: "Fracking won't help us limit climate change.

"It risks causing pollution and harming health. Not only is fracking bad for our climate, it risks causing air, water and noise pollution. It uses toxic chemicals that may not be regulated well enough. An accident could mean that these chemicals leak into water supplies or cause pollution above ground. In fact, this has happened many times in the US.

"It would also impact the countryside. The impact of large-scale fracking on the British countryside would be enormous. Thousands of wells would be needed to produce just half of the UK's gas demand. This industrial operation would also require huge numbers of trucks delivering chemicals and taking away contaminated waste water.

"It wouldn't bring down energy bills. On top of all this, fracking won't even bring down our energy bills. The way the energy market works means any gas from it will be sold to the highest bidder globally, which won't help reduce bills."

The crunch Commons vote on the future of fracking descended into mayhem on Wednesday evening, after more than 40 Tory MPs failed to back Truss's government, with some making serious allegations relating to physical misconduct with whips physically pulling Tories into voting.

The government emerged victorious, by 326 votes opposing the Labour motion to 230 backing it, yet amid the turmoil and incompetence running wild in the corridors of power at the moment, it may well turn into a hollow triumph as Truss's party struggles to avoid collapsing, as the prospect of a General Election looms.

Hitchin Nub News has contacted Mr Afolami for comment.