Prince William

Prince William

Britain's Prince William is reportedly against fracking.

The 32-year-old royal is said to have had an awkward encounter with Simon Toole - who is an expert on the controversial drilling technique used to extract gas - when he visited Buckingham Palace to collect his CBE.

Mr. Toole is a key figure at the Department of Energy and Climate Change, who released a report last year showing that a large area of Norfolk - where the Duke of Cambridge resides with his wife Duchess Catherine and their son Prince George - was under consideration for fracking.

Speaking about his apprehension about meeting William, Mr. Toole shared: "I went up [to receive my gong for services to oil, gas and energy infrastructure development] and the Prince asked me what I did.

"I explained and said it involved fracking and then waited..."

The energy expert claims his answer was followed by an ominous silence which confirmed his suspicions William had reservations about the technique of drilling.

Mr. Toole added to the Daily Mail newspaper: "I did expect he had views on that and I thought, 'This could be awkward'.

"Then he said, 'Yes, this will be difficult', and quickly changed the subject. I don't think he is a big fan."