MP for Thirsk and Malton Kevin Hollinrake is to chair a meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group Shale Gas Regulation & Planning next week, to discuss regulation of the fracking industry.

Among the guests at the meeting will be minister of state Andrea Leadsom MP, and representatives from the Environment Agency, Health and Safety Executive, ReFINE, and Greenpeace.

The group was formed in late March, when Mr Hollinrake was elected chair.

The purpose of the group is to recommend an effective regulation and planning regime should shale gas extraction take place.

Mr Hollinrake has said before that the aim of the group is not to discuss the pros and cons of fracking but "to recommend appropriate regulation and planning regimes, should fracking take place."

No sponsorship is being received from any outside bodies. In January, Mr Hollinrake resigned from a leading role on a parliamentary committee after it emerged that the committee's administration was being funded by oil and gas companies.

After this resignation he announced his intention to set up this new group.

The membership of this APPG includes MPs and peers from across the political parties, plus academics and representatives from various organisations.

Among the issues to be discussed at nest week's meeting are the possibility of water contamination, earthquakes, density of sites, medical concerns, the role of the Planning Inspectorate and community benefits.

They will discuss what regulations are currently in place, how appropriate they are and "how regulations could be implemented and sustained" if fracking were to take place.