Trapped in underground rocks, a potential energy resource has eluded generations of British politicians.

It's called shale gas and the method of getting it out of the ground, known as fracking, has proved politically difficult.

Fracking, short for hydraulic fracturing, has been banned many times by different prime ministers since 2011 over concerns about earthquakes and environmental impacts.

And yet despite this, Reform UK - which is leading in national opinion polls - believe it's worth going after the gas again.

"We've got potentially hundreds of billions of energy treasure in the form of shale gas," Richard Tice, the party's deputy leader and energy spokesperson, says.

"It's grossly financially negligent to a criminal degree to leave that value underground and not to extract it."

The party led by Nigel Farage is telling energy firms to get ready to "drill, baby, drill" if it gets into government after the next general election.

Reform UK says it's serious about shale - but will its plans succeed where so many others have failed?

The history of fracking in the UK shows it won't be easy.