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Damning assessment of ‘disastrous’ scheme is a blow to plans for reaching net zero emissions
The UK government’s flagship home insulation scheme, intended to kickstart a green recovery from the Covid-19 crisis, has been botched, disastrous in administration, devastating in some of its impacts, and stands in urgent need of rescue, an influential committee of MPs has said.
Their outspoken criticism is a blow to the government’s plans for reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions, and comes as ministers prepare to host vital UN climate talks – called Cop26 – in Glasgow this November.
Related: Green homes grant will meet only tiny fraction of target in England
Continue reading...Report reveals more than 250 deals between high-carbon industries and leading sports teams
Polluting industries are pouring hundreds of millions of pounds into sports sponsorship in an attempt to “sports-wash” their role in the climate crisis, according to the authors of a report published on Monday.
The study reveals more than 250 advertising and sponsorship deals between some of the biggest corporate polluters and leading sports teams and organisation.
Continue reading...Scientists warn that Nobel summit and long-term decisions to save the planet are at risk from targeted attacks online
Fake news on social media about climate change and biodiversity loss is having a worrying impact in the battle to halt the growing environmental threats to the planet, a group of scientists and analysts have warned.
In a report published by the Royal Swedish Academy of Science, they say measures needed to create a healthier, more resilient planet – by reducing fossil fuel emissions, overfishing and other threats – will be hard to enforce if they continue to suffer targeted attacks in social media. The international cooperation that is needed to halt global heating and species loss could otherwise be jeopardised, they say.
Continue reading...He earned a fortune at Goldman Sachs, but now the banker wants the financial sector to reassess its values and tackle the climate emergency
Read an exclusive extract from Carney’s bookMark Carney is no ordinary banker. He is the banker’s banker, the superstar banker, the George Clooney of banking, possibly even the James Bond of banking. The accolades bestowed on him are many: he was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2010, the world’s most trusted Canadian in 2011, and hailed as Britain’s most influential Catholic (by The Tablet) in 2015.
Since leaving his post as governor of the Bank of England in March last year, Carney has turned his attention to saving the planet. He is now the United Nations’ special envoy for climate action and finance, and has been appointed by Boris Johnson as finance adviser for the UK presidency of the Cop26 climate change conference in Glasgow in November. Then there is his new job at Brookfield Asset Management, the world’s second-largest investor in climate-friendly businesses, where he is in charge of the impact fund. (In February, Carney was accused by climate experts of greenwashing after he claimed Brookfield was a “net zero” company. A few days later, he tweeted an acknowledgment that Brookfield’s investments in renewable energy are not the same as having net-zero emissions.) Last month it was announced he had joined the board of US digital payments giant Stripe, tasked with helping businesses fund emerging carbon-removal technologies. And he’s also managed to squeeze in a 600-page book, Value(s): Building A Better World For All. In it, Carney analyses the three global 21st-century crises: the financial crash, Covid, the climate crisis. He concludes that our values have been sacrificed at the altar of what is simply valuable; if we are to have any hope of avoiding an environmental Armageddon we must recover them.
The limits of Thatcher and Reagan’s approach, that the answer to everything is to create a market, are clear
I don’t shy away from the fact I worked for Goldman Sachs. I learned a lot, I have no regrets
Related: Bill Gates: ‘Carbon neutrality in a decade is a fairytale. Why peddle fantasies?’
I didn’t want to do the Bank of England job. But it was a challenge. The financial system had basically failed
Who is the most impressive British politician? ‘Gordon Brown. He has a mind like a hyperlink. Brown is a person of action’
Continue reading...The former head of the Bank of England looks at the danger of putting a price on everything
Read Simon Hattenstone’s interview with Mark CarneyA few summers ago when a range of policymakers, business people, academics, labour leaders and charity workers gathered at the Vatican to discuss the future of the market system, Pope Francis surprised us by joining the lunch and sharing a parable. He observed that:
Our meal will be accompanied by wine. Now, wine is many things. It has a bouquet, colour and richness of taste that all complement the food. It has alcohol that can enliven the mind. Wine enriches all our senses.
Continue reading...Australia’s longtime finance minister to pursue a ‘global’ approach to help countries become carbon-neutral by 2050
Mathias Cormann says he cannot wait to start his new role as the head of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Australia’s longest-serving finance minister will take over as secretary general of the Paris-based organisation from outgoing Angel Gurría.
Related: Mathias Cormann elected OECD chief despite climate record
Related: Climate experts in dismay at choice of Mathias Cormann as OECD chief
Continue reading...Former Australian finance minister’s candidacy was dogged by complaints from environmental groups
Australia’s former finance minister Mathias Cormann has won a hard-fought election to become the new chief of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), despite grave concerns voiced by environmental groups over his record on climate change.
Cormann narrowly defeated the Swedish former EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmström in the election to lead the 37-member Paris-based organisation, which gives advice to member governments on economic trends, inequality, fighting corruption and trade and is seen as the world’s leading rulemaker on corporate tax.
Related: Climate experts in dismay at choice of Mathias Cormann as OECD chief
Related: UK warned not to back Mathias Cormann as new OECD head
Continue reading...Critics say election of former Australian finance minister with ‘atrocious record’ sends a dangerous signal
Climate experts have expressed dismay at the choice of Mathias Cormann, a former finance minister in an Australian government with a record of strong hostility to climate action, as secretary general of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), an international institution that advises rich countries on policy and poor countries on how to become wealthier.
Jennifer Morgan, the executive director of Greenpeace International, said: “We have little confidence in Cormann’s ability to ensure the OECD is a leader in tackling the climate crisis, when he has an atrocious record on the issue. If the OECD is to fulfil its mandate, it must confront the climate emergency, arguably the biggest social justice issue of our time.”
Related: Mathias Cormann elected OECD chief despite climate record
Continue reading...Communities secretary cited climate change and controversy for ‘calling in’ deep coalmine decision
A public inquiry is to be held into plans for the UK’s first new deep coalmine in decades after the communities secretary “called in” the decision on the project, taking it out of the hands of local government.Facing a legal challenge, Robert Jenrick reversed his decision not to intervene in the dispute, having previously said it was a local matter. In his decision, he cited new climate change advice and rising controversy over the plans, following vocal criticism from government scientific advisers and leading scientists.
Related: Robert Jenrick orders public inquiry into Cumbria coalmine
Continue reading...Kern county has approved the drilling of thousands of new wells despite opposition from farmers and activists
Kern county, which sprawls more than 8,000 square miles, connecting the Sierra Nevada slopes and the Mojave Desert to the counties on the Central Coast, is the oil capital of California. The county produces about 70% of the state’s oil and more than 90% of its natural gas – and it has plans to ramp up production.
This week the county approved an ordinance that would allow thousands of new wells to be drilled over the next 15 years. The decision comes despite deep opposition from local farmers and environmental groups, and it puts the county directly at odds with a state that has branded itself as a trailblazer on climate and set ambitious goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Related: 'California and Texas are warnings': blackouts show US deeply unprepared for the climate crisis
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