Category: Environment

With no policies and no clue Shapps tries the culture war thinbg on Labour stating that they are funded by “Just stop oil”. Whilst this is a blatant lie that any 10 year old would spot, it goers down well with the deranged readers of the media trash. Already they have claimed that supporting green energy would add hundreds to energy bills. Tjey never mention the cost of not supporting it. The UK is one of the most gas reliant countries in Europe and therefore one of the most susceptable to price fluctuations (and we have seen how the free market for mortgages has impacted on many). Allowing easier planning for onshore wind would be an immediate benefit.

All new housing should be fitted with south facing solar panels and double insolation.

All urban areas should have a tree planting policy to amealorate future temperature fluctuations. Water companies should provide discounts for water butts, car parks should be latticed to encourage infiltration, and where appropriate be covered with solar panels.

And I repeat my call for news programmes to include a section on the climate crisis and daily updates on proportion of green energy produced every day. How aboutr a “Tomorrow’s Green World” similar to the 1970’s innovation programme.

Jenrick is trying to be nastier than Braverman whilstLocal Government Minister, Lee Rowley told S.Cambridgeshire District Council to stop an experiment with a 4 day week immediately. Evidence provided by the secretly funded right wing numbskull tank, Tax Payers Alliance suggested an unjustified cost of £30bn. These people seem to hate any signs of improving peoples lifestyles. Evidence suggests better job retention and efficiencies. As James Nash, leader of Bassetlaw District Council said “It is not for the government to say that you must work a 5 day week”. Little creep Gove disagrees and says people must work a 5 day week. It is after all only an experiment. The same people would have complained about the abolishment of the 6 day week and paid holidays.

The railways are also getting a backnash from plans to cut ticket offices., Mean while the Government has failed to comment on the fact that South East Water spent £232mill on dividends(£162m) and interest repayments over the last 2 years, but only £179.8m on upgrading the infrastructure. Nationalised public service companies working for investors not the public.

Today is forecast to be quyte warm,25C here and 30C in London. Nothing like the temperatures being experienced in China where temperatures in Beijing have exceeded 35C for 14 consecutive days. Torrential rain has also hit many areas with at least 15 deaths in the floods. With El Nino looming we can expect more “biblical” disasters this year and an increase in environmental migrants.

Yet the government is talking about abandoning net zero targets, along with the environmental diversity ones already being missed. With Braverman becoming ever more beligerent and the growth of a Fortress UK mentality I fear for my grandchildren.Will they see the wonderous sights I have? The kingfisher hovering above a lake in Devon, Adonis Blue butterflies on the South Downs, Dolphins whilst crossing the Tagus by Lisbon, Arctic terns on the beach at Seaford. All little things but very memorable to me. With to present government we will continue to use petrochemicals and pollute the environment, put off energy efficiences in housing and permit tye use of harmful agri-chemicals.

The Mail has got Dorries to. slag off electric cars – basically fuck the environment, lets use up oil and gas and pretend that the sea ice around Antarctica is not melting or that sea temperatures around Britain are not at record highs. And Tessla anounce a record 466000 cars sold worldwide in the last 3 months. Whatever MadNads complaints the government needs to up the number of charging points and increase generation of clean electricity. A trade in scheme for old deisel cars would be good. It is all part of the culture wars theme – it is almost an anti-young war, after all the young are the most concerned about the environment.

So Zac Goldsmith has resigned with a bang! He has spelt out the PM’s indifference and eregious apathy to climate change, animal welfare and international treaties. What this means on a practical level is a set back for the endangered wildlife of this country. Is it too much to surmise that he will now put all his eggs into the culture wars and migration issues? People may be subsumed by the credit crisis and the cost of living but they are not blind to the woes of our planet? The LibDems are ably placed to pick up votes from environmentally minded toriesm whilst Starmer will need to stop pandering to the economic growth at all costs element of the centerist Labour Party.

The main stream right wing media will continue to bang on about “Just Stop Oil” whose rather childish tactics are seen to be futile. Jeremy Corbyn will be criticised for his allotment whilst Sunak may offer a bail out the sewage shovelers.

Boss Sarah Bentley resigns without making te reason public. Could it be that the job is impossible? Thames has a £14bn debt pile it has built up over successive ownerships – largely the Aussie bank – Macquarie, it is owned by a number of pension funds and sovereign wealth funds. Besides its awful environmental record it has seen leakages increase, whilst all the time paying out high dividends and wages to its management, and the increase in interest rates will mean higher repayment costs. Will it default and be taken back into public ownership – another blot on Thatchers record? There would seem to be 2 scenarios – both disasterous for the government. Hiking water costs by 40% has been suggested by some (Thames Water charges went up by 11.6% on 1st April; this would be completely unpalatable given the mortgage hikes and cost of living crisis; or, let it go bust. The government may find this impossibkke given the sovereign wealth funds including China (8.6%), Abu Dhabi (9.9%) (and pension funds including Ontario (31%) and British Universities Staff Pension Fund (20%). Presumably the Universities fund would need to be underwritten by the government, but allowing the companny to go bust could cause all sorts of knock on impacts for foreign investment? Present profit is £1 billion, but whilst leaving the EU has halted some of the fines they would have accrued, they can expect an increasing public pressure to cut the sewage and price rises. OFWAT is tasked with moderating costs and setting targets – now is the tie to do so.

This also has implications for Starmer who seems set on wining approval from the city