OK, We'll Kill Off All The Large Herbivores then, Shall We?

It's lucky Barbados doesn't have the sweeping herds of the Serengetti, so tourism won't be as affected, eh, Mia?

As temperatures continue to rise – including in the oceans, where the extra heat fuels more powerful hurricanes – far greater catastrophes lie ahead as feedback loops push the planet past irreversible tipping points.We have already passed our first tipping point, the progressive loss of warm-water coral reefs, on which nearly a billion people and a quarter of marine life depend; a development particularly relevant to island countries like Barbados.

We are on the brink of several more, including the death of the Amazon rainforest...

Which is actually in more danger from climate shindigs, isn't it? 

Cutting methane emissions is the fastest and simplest way to slow near-term warming and prevent triggering more tipping points.

A legally binding methane agreement for the oil and gas sector can prevent energy waste, while buying time over the next 15 to 20 years to build resilience as research to scale up decarbonising technologies to commercial level builds pace. This will give countries in the south with oil and gas assets the opportunity to use the one thing that can finance their way to net zero.

Net Zero is a fantasy, Mia, nothing we humans down here can do, when climate is driven by that giant ball of burning hydrogen in the sky. 

Not Now They’ve Realised What The Cost To Them Will Be

There’s not much that unites our fractured House of Commons at the moment. But on one issue, politicians from all parties seem to agree: the great British public don’t really want ambitious action to meet net zero goals. They may concur on this – but they are wrong.

Yers, here comes a Guardian columnist to tell us what's reality - in her world.

It was Theresa May who signed the target into law in 2019, with cross-party support. Council elections this spring saw victories for Reform UK, which opposes most net zero policies outright, and argues for an economy based on fossil fuels. Meanwhile, the Labour government has net zero as one of its five missions, yet it, too, seems reluctant to make a positive case for action to tackle the climate crisis. It worries there won’t be enough support for policies such as replacing gas boilers or managing demand for flying, and it has been further cowed by unhelpful voices off from (sic) the former prime minister Tony Blair.

But now the plans are starting to bite and hit voters in the pocket, they are no longer keen to be the guinea pigs for pie-in-the-sky eco-nonsense. 

Sounds plausible to some, but there’s a catch: this isn’t actually what people want at all. Our research with politicians and citizens shows that politicians consistently underestimate public support for climate action.

Because you've carefully selected those politicians andd citizen to ensure you get exactly the response you need.... 

There is a fundamental disconnect between what politicians believe the country thinks, and what evidence shows is the reality on the ground.

I don't doubt that, but if you think people are willing to swallow the Net Zero nonsense, you've got another think coming. 

Why is it that politicians get this so wrong? The answer lies in who they are hearing from. Think of public opinion on climate and some caricatures are likely to pop into your head. The climate protesters and campaigners, some so committed that they are willing to risk a prison sentence. And at the other end of the spectrum, an equally noisy minority who question climate science, or express deep scepticism about the solutions, whether windfarms, heat pumps or electric vehicles.

Because they've experienced them!  

It’s far from inevitable that climate issues will be dragged down by polarised politics. That’s not what people want. But unless politicians stop assuming and start listening, that’s what may happen.

Sadly, the cheap, green energy promise turns out so often to be just another politician's promise - and we all know how those turn out by now! 

Looks Like The NHM Is Fixing To Go Broke

The Natural History Museum in London has announced a major programme of transformation it says will mark “a step-change from being a catalogue of natural history to a catalyst for change...”

Change for what?  

...in response to the climate emergency.

*sighs* I should have know they wouldn't stop with exiling Dippy. They seem determined to ruin my favourite museum. 

The scheme to renovate the museum’s celebrated Victorian building and develop a new research and storage facility will build on its aim to turn visitors into “advocates for the planet”, it said on Thursday. Four existing galleries will be overhauled, including its enormously popular dinosaur gallery, while the museum plans to reopen two long-closed exhibition spaces, one of which, the Old General Herbarium, has not been accessible to the public since 1948. One of them will house a new permanent exhibition that the museum’s director, Doug Gurr, said would include the most explicit climate messaging it had ever offered. The exhibition, Fixing Our Broken Planet, will have the express aim of “nudging” visitors to change their behaviour, he said.

This 'nudging' has no place in a museum. 

“Of course, we still want people to have a brilliant, fun family day out. But if you can come out of that being a little bit more interested in nature and a little bit more aware of some of the challenges, you’re a bit more likely to want to do something about it.”

Nope, not me! I know propaganda when I see it, even when it doesn't have a little explanatory label in the case... 

Is It 'Green' Because It's Hardly Ever Working?

A school has been forced to close six times in three months because its new £358,000 air source heat pump system keeps failing.

Oops! 

The “green” energy source was installed at Kingsnorth Primary in Ashford over the summer as part of a government initiative to help schools cut carbon emissions.

Another example of government initiatives being forced on organisations by bribery, then... 

The school is part of the Aquila, Diocese of Canterbury Academies Trust, which runs 16 schools in Kent.

A Trust spokesperson said: “We apologise for the inconvenience and disruption caused to Kingsnorth Primary School’s pupils and families and we want to assure the community that we have been, and are continuing to, do everything within our power to rectify this situation as quickly as possible.”

You could always rip the damn things out? 

“Our priority has always been to keep Kingsnorth open, but there have been occasions where we have had no choice but to close due to a complete failure of the heating system, electrical power issues and the associated wider safety concerns.

“Unfortunately, the response and site attendance by contractors hasn’t been as quick as we have needed it to be and we have continued to apply pressure and emphasise that the issues need to be addressed urgently.

“We have had electrical and mechanical engineers on-site testing electrical load capacities, as well as finding an alternative option to have a more robust temporary heating solution in place.”

Maybe they'll suggest installing woodburners... 

H/T: farmergeddon via Twitter

Better Rebrand...

...as 'GoBack':

A fleet of electric buses has been taken out of service after a doubledecker caught fire in south London this week.

Transport for London (TfL) said the electric buses had been “temporarily withdrawn” by operator GoAhead.

As Longrider points out, these EVs seem to be contributing more emissions than the manufacturer's claims would have one believe...

Pretty Soon, You Won’t Be Able To Give Them Away…

The number of new cars registered in the UK has jumped by nearly 18% but electric vehicle demand is flatlining, prompting the industry to call for a VAT cut to stimulate sales.

The lacklustre growth in the electric vehicle market comes despite a government goal to totally phase out petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicles by 2035, albeit one that was diluted by Rishi Sunak last September from an original target of 2030.

And it's still not enough. So, scrap it, or try even more desperately to ram these things down the throats of reluctant consumers? 

Mike Hawes, the SMMT chief executive, said: “Government has challenged the UK automotive sector with the world’s boldest transition timeline and is investing to ensure we are a major maker of electric vehicles.

“It must now help all drivers buy into this future, with consumer incentives that will make the UK the leading European market for ZEVs.”

*sighs* 

Well, Of Course!

Bill payers could be on the hook for almost £6bn to cover the cost of bailing out suppliers that went bust during the energy crisis, according to the government’s spending watchdog.

I mean, don't we always?

Dame Meg Hillier, the chair of the committee, said: “Our report is a sobering reminder that we are still living with the fallout of the failure of so many energy suppliers in 2021-22.

Right, sure. Not a failure of government, oh dear me, no...

But…But…

People are used to seeing stark warnings on tobacco products alerting them about the potentially deadly risks to health. Now a study suggests similar labelling on food could help them make wiser choices about not just their health, but the health of the planet.

...if people have 'grown used to seeing them' doesn't that imply it's not working? And so, won't work on this either?

Researchers believe their findings could help encourage changes in gastronomic choices that could ultimately benefit the environment. “Reaching net zero is a priority for the nation and the planet,” Hughes said.

No, it isn’t. 

But It's For Gaia!

So why wouldn't you risk your child's health? Ah, if only there had been some warning it was a big scam...

Oh, wait! 

The bamboo “eco-cups” are promoted as helping to protect the planet, but are usually non-recyclable.

See, anyone with their head screwed on would smell a rat at this, surely? 

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) said it had advised retailers to withdraw products in June and any further sales would be unlawful. Despite the ban, the bamboo and plastic products are still widely available online, including children’s cups and plates.

What sort of rapacious capitalist businesses would rather harm the kiddiewinks than forgo that filthy lucre, then? 

WWF-UK, the wildlife charity, was last week selling a reusable bamboo cup for £7.50, which it says “helps protect our planet”.

Ooops!

Why Would They Ever Be Able To..?

The government watchdog called on ministers to set out how they plan to convince the public to take up a smart meter after a “troubled” rollout that began in 2011.

They could always ask these guys for advice?  

The government has pushed back the date by which it hoped that all homes and businesses would have a smart meter three times since it first proposed a deadline of 2019.

Meg Hillier, the Labour MP who is chair of the committee, said: “Some 15 years later and four years after that missed target, and its vision of access and support for every household to control their energy efficiency remains a distant one.”

Because it really means someone else controls it, Meg...

Late last year it emerged that firms had been remotely switching customers on to pay-as-you-go tariffs through their smart meters. Separately, energy firms have been temporarily banned from physically fitting prepayment meters under warrant.

Only temporarily? Until when, I wonder... Still, as Longrider points out, it's a good way to stick it to the government good and hard.

Relentless...

We may all think we're doing our bit for the planet by sipping our drinks out of a paper straw.

I don't. I usually think 'Wow, this is a lovely cocktail'...

But the 'eco-friendly' alternatives contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals, a new study has concluded.

Oh. Right. Of course... 

In the first analysis of its kind in Europe, Belgian researchers tested 39 brands of straws for the group of synthetic chemicals known as poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). PFAS were found in the majority of the straws tested and were most common in those made from paper and bamboo.

So having demanded we don't use plastic, and now finding fault with paper, what do they suggest? 

The authors advised people use stainless steel straws, or avoid using straws at all.

Well, I suppose at least they didn't suggest not drinking. 

Yet. 

The Accent Is On The 'Mentalist' Bit...

They are relentless, aren't they?

Jon Fuller, a member of South East Essex Friends of the Earth, said the group “vigorously supports” clean air schemes across town and city centres. The zones are areas where a fee is charged for driving the most polluting vehicles.

Mr Fuller said a congestion charge style scheme would help tackle climate change and air pollution.

*sighs* Really? Well, no. As he himself admits! 

“Our preference is for a ULEZ in town and city centres in south Essex because we don’t want to divert traffic from arterial roads, such as the A13 and A127, to minor roads.

“If a congestion charge was implemented, it won’t make a difference because people will move to less major roads to avoid the cost.”

Make up your mind, man! 

“However, becoming a ULEZ will encourage people to get rid of their old cars, such as diesel motors, for a more environmentally-friendly model.

“In turn, this will help improve the air quality in south Essex.”

I know something else that would do that. Can you guess what it is? 

'Nurse! He's At It Again!'

George Monbiot, our country's biggest joke in the journalism world, and boy, is that a tough field..!

The mocking on Twitter was as swift and merciless as those same predators bringing down a hapless buffalo:

Leading one to wonder what would happen if the lions did too good a job?

So, It Takes Two To Tango...

...but apparently only one to breach the peace:

When they say 'further action' you just know they aren't talking about the eco-loons, don't you? The observers to their actions certainly do:

During the struggle, the officer says: 'You are f*****g assaulting people'.

The van's driver shouts at the officers to 'get off my truck' while a passing taxi driver shouts out of his window that it is 'absolutely disgusting'.

Another person, who cannot be seen on camera, tells the officers to 'give the guy a break, he's just trying to get to work'.

They've forgotten they police by consent. As the commenters at Longrider's site point out, this won't end well.  

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said: 'I completely understand the frustration and anger of London's communities when protesters walk slowly in the roads and must wonder why we do not just arrest them.

'Police have legal obligations connected with our response to protest and we must police peaceful protest in a proportionate manner.'

Blocking the highway is not 'peaceful protest', and you know that all too well. 

'Therefore, I urge people not to intervene and to let police deal with the situation.'

We've seen that you aren't prepaared to, though. 

Maybe They Aren't 'Losing Out' At All?

Maybe they are smart enough to know a bad decision when they see one?

Tens of thousands of homes are missing out on government heat pump subsidies worth up to £6,000, as critics slam the scheme as a 'cash bung' for the rich.

Now, why would people turn down 'free' money from the government? It's a puzzle, isn't it, Reader? Unless, maybe, they read the newpapers...

The Government has set aside £150million to subsidise 30,000 homes and small businesses a year fitting heat pumps or biomass boilers. But the Government scheme is being underused, with just 8,584 heat pumps and 106 biomass boilers fitted between May 2022 and March 2023 - not even a third of its target.

Yup, we know.  

Meanwhile, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme has been slammed for giving the rich a tax break and discount for fitting heat pumps while poorer households lose out.

Or, win? 

Will They Never Learn..?

Wait, what..?

Err...

H/T: Ian J via email

Giving The Greens And Lib Dems A Run For Their Money...

Canterbury City Council is proposing to divide the city into five different districts, with drivers unable to cross between zones without being fined. Instead, the council is asking residents to drive along a new bypass, which along with other A roads, would create a ring-road style approach.

To do so, they would have to leave their current neighbourhood and re-enter their chosen location via specific, newly permitted routes. Anyone breaking the new driving rule would be hit with a fine when their movement is captured on number-plate recognition cameras, under the proposals.

What with this and the London Mayor's barmy plans, you could be forgiven for thinking the usual suspects see motorists as sheep to be fleeced anytime. Still, I suppose that's typical of the Greens or the Lib Dems or whichever crazy out of touch politicians are pushing this... 

Last week Liberal Democrat councillor Nick Eden-Green said the council has 'no real idea of what it's going to cost', adding that it could total 'about £100million'.

'The government certainly is not going to stump up the money and we can't either,' he told Canterbury City Council's cabinet at a meeting, Kent Online reported.

Oh! So, who..? 

The plan was modelled on the Belgian city of Ghent, which launched a Circulation Plan in 2017 that divided the city into six areas to cut the number of cars in the city centre. It was defended by Conservative council leader Ben Fitter-Harding, who said 'that doing nothing is not an option'.

/facepalm 

Great, Well Done, Now Give Them The Will To Use Them...

After ambulances and fire engines struggled to get through, Number 10 said any disruption to the emergency services' work is 'unacceptable'.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'These sorts of protests that disrupt peoples' daily lives or, indeed, can stop our emergency services from potentially saving lives are unacceptable.

'That's why we've already toughened powers for the police, we've given them new powers to act and we are also taking further powers through the House at the moment to ensure they can go even further in preventing these individuals from disrupting peoples' lives.'

Fantastic news, but as we've seen with the Dangerous Dogs Act, beefing up the powers available is worthless when they lack the work ethic to actually use them...

...commissioner Sir Mark Rowley told the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee that officers have to wait until protests are deemed to meet a legal threshold of causing major disruption before they can be shut down.

His officers are in touch with Transport for London, local councils and the emergency services several times per day to check the level of disruption caused. Sir Mark said: 'Over the last 11 days, all of those partners have been of a view that it doesn't cause serious disruption.'

Said, no doubt, by people sitting in cozy air-conditioned offices, and not out on the streets trying to get a fire engine, ambulance or delivery vehicle through traffic... 

Newsflash, Chris: 'Down The Road' Is Out Of Range!

A police force using electric vehicles is struggling to respond to crime because the batteries keep going flat, a Police and Crime Commissioner said.

Oh, well, it's probably one or two show vehicles, so...

Ah. 

Gloucestershire Constabulary has the largest full electric fleet in the UK, making up 21% of their 435 vehicles.

/facepalm 

PCC Chris Nelson said while "we've all got to go towards electric vehicles moving forwards," the force has the largest fleet by percentage size and "that has brought its problems".

"The design options available for electric vehicles for operational uses are not perhaps as advanced as I would like them to be."

He added that he was "cautious about going any further down that road at this stage".

Well, yes, if there's no charging station at the end of it, no wonder! 

H/T: Ian J via email

It's Called 'Consequences', Vicky...

...and it's about time you and the rest of the eco-loons faced them:

A fuel price protester arrested after taking part in a 'go slow' demonstration which caused gridlock on the Severn Bridge has moaned about the state of her police cell.

Vicky Stamper - who was one of the 12 drivers arrested on Monday after slowing traffic on the M4 between England and Wales - claims she was kept in custody by Gwent Police for 11 hours. The former HGV driver, from Cwmbran, South Wales, claims the police cell was squalid 'with blood up the walls and sick over the toilet'. 

She also claims she was slapped with a £150 charge to get her car back after it was seized by officers during the protests.

Ha ha ha ha ha!  

Ms Stamper, who said she recently lost her job as a HGV driver due to the rising fuel costs, was told she must pay £150 to get her car back, rising by £21 each day she failed to pay, she claimed.

'If I paid that I wouldn't be able to do any shopping for two weeks - I would have to go without food so my 16-year-old son can eat,' Mrs Stamper said.

Looking at the state of you, I don't really think that's the bad idea that you seem to think it is...

But then, clearly, you aren't the sharpest knife in the drawer, eh? 

She later phoned Gwent Police on Tuesday morning to complain. She said: 'I said I'd like to report my car stolen. They said, "Right, do you have any idea who it was?" I told them, "Yeah I know exactly who it was". They said "who" and I said, "You lot."

'I told them they'd taken it off my partner who was more than capable and insured to drive it home. He ended up paying £16 for a taxi from Magor services.

Eventually the police hung up on me.'

The 'Daily Mail' will clearly lap up your sob story, though.