Fracking firms will be allowed to access vast reserves of underground gas without the permission of landowners under controversial laws being drawn up by the Government.
Ministers are preparing an overhaul of trespass legislation to make it easier for firms to ignore objections.
One source said the reform, which will infuriate anti-fracking campaigners, was likely to be included in the Queen’s Speech setting out the Government’s plans for its final year.
Chancellor George Osborne is offering generous tax breaks to kickstart the technology. He believes fracking for shale gas could herald an energy revolution that will boost the economy, make Britain more self-sufficient and put an end to sky-high bills from greedy energy firms.
Scientists say the UK is sitting on deposits of enough shale gas to supply the whole country for at least 40 years, mirroring the North Sea oil boom of the Seventies.