Guessing Game Over Britain’s New Climate and Energy Policies

Questions over whether or not the new Environment Secretary Owen Paterson regards addressing climate change as a priority for his department remain unanswered, after the government released a statement that failed to address media reports that he is widely regarded as a “climate sceptic”. Rumours have circulated around Whitehall all week about the extent to which the new Environment Secretary opposes green initiatives, following reports he recently led calls for a rapid expansion in shale gas projects, an end to all renewable energy subsidies, and the construction of more airport capacity. One senior sustainability executive at a major firm said the reshuffle looked like “bad news” for environmental issues, adding that Paterson’s appointment sent out “all the wrong signals to investors”. --James Murray, BusinessGreen, 7 September 2012

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The new Cabinet minister in charge of the environment has been endorsed by Lord Lawson, the noted climate change sceptic, for his “reason and sense” on the issue. Owen Paterson is likely to use the berth to tackle the EU Common Fisheries Policy, which he has described as “grotesque”. The Lib Dems have also criticised the policy, so he may be able to find consensus for reform on the issue. The issue of climate change is controlled by a different department, but the overlap between the two ministries, particularly on Cabinet committees, means his views are likely to have an impact on policy. The endorsement by Lord Lawson, the former Chancellor, will cause the most nervousness among environmentalists. “He is in fact one of the most able and promising young men or women around the cabinet and therefore his promotion to environment is extremely welcome… he is a man of reason and sense.” -- Sam Coates,The Times, 6 September 2012 I asked Defra and Decc if their new ministers Mr Paterson and Mr Hayes accepted the scientific evidence of the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. So far, Defra has not replied. But Decc responded with a statement from Mr Hayes. "We face a major challenge to keep the lights on in the most cost-effective way. In achieving this, we must not be over-reliant on any one technology, but build a balanced low-carbon mix and make the best use of Britain's domestic energy resources and skilled workforce." However, this could be interpreted as an ambiguous statement that could lead to a large increase in gas use. Both ministers would face serious credibility problems among international colleagues if they reject majority climate science. Both would face serious credibility problems among international colleagues if they rejected majority climate science. Lord Lawson, a leading UK climate change sceptic, welcomed the appointment of Mr Paterson, who he described as "one of the ablest people in Cabinet". His colleague at the Global Warming Policy Foundation, Benny Peiser, applauded Mr Paterson's support for ending energy subsidies and promoting shale gas. Britain's energy policy now faces a huge opportunity, Mr Peiser said: "(Mr Paterson) will have to prove that there is a rational and effective alternative to green command and control policies that Britain can no longer afford." --Roger Harrabin, BBC News, 5 September 2012

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This is getting silly. The new environment secretary Owen Paterson has been widely accused of being a climate change sceptic, a serious charge for the holder of his post in a government pledged by David Cameron to be the "greenest ever". The accusation may be a false one and if so it would be very easy to dismiss. So the Guardian asked the environment department's press office: "What is the secretary of state's view on climate change? Will he deny he's a climate change sceptic?" It took a long time to get a reply, but here it is, in full. A spokesperson said: "Defra is responsible for a range of issues affecting the environment and the rural economy. One of these issues is the impact of climate change and the Secretary of State is committed to exploring and developing the response required by Government, business and communities." You don't need to be a £1000-an-hour lawyer to realise that's not a straight answer. --Damian Carrington, The Guardian, 7 September 2012 Cameron’s U-turn on the environment has the greens howling, but should delight voters. Owen Paterson is far from a household name, but the significance of his appointment as Environment Secretary has not been lost on the green lobby groups. As far as they’re concerned, this is war. They are already denouncing him as a “prominent hater of wind turbines” and overall climate change sceptic. It is just as well, then, that Paterson has spent two years at Northern Ireland, learning the art of political combat. For his critics are quite right to detect a shift in policy. In economic terms, too, shale is a godsend for Cameron, just as North Sea oil was for Thatcher: it could well make Blackpool into the Dallas of the north, creating 5,000 jobs in an area that desperately needs them. But this gift horse is being sent packing, as if the Prime Minister wants to be left alone with his economic misery. Even as Northern Ireland Secretary, Paterson was saying in Cabinet that this was lunacy. Then, he was a lone voice. Now, he is in charge of the policy. --Fraser Nelson, The Daily Telegraph, 7 September 2012 The renewable energy industry is at a key point in its development. Whilst it is clear we need more of it to meet our emissions reductions targets, the coalition seems set on damaging and destabilising its growth. The appointment this week of an energy minister who has spoken against the building of new wind turbines and an environment minister who is reported to be sceptical of climate science and who has a soft spot for shale gas only adds to the worries we already had about the government's commitment to renewable energy. The fiasco that happened around the feed-in tariff earlier in the year demonstrates what an impact changes in political whims can have on our industry. While one week wind may be slated for aesthetic reasons, PV may be decreed unreasonably expensive the next; indeed, the only seeming consistency in the current administration’s energy policy is a lack of commitment to supporting the development of renewable technologies. --Kit Jones, Renewable Energy Magazine, 6 September 2012 South Africa has lifted a moratorium on shale gas exploration in the semi-arid Karoo region, where the extraction technique of “fracking” might be used to tap into some of the world’s potentially largest stocks of the energy source. Collins Chabane, a minister in the President’s office , said on Friday the cabinet had decided to lift a moratorium, imposed in April last year, after a study eased safety concerns related to the controversial method. “When (the results of the study) … came back, they recommended that it was clearly safe for us to have that programme of exploration of shale gas,” Chabane told reporters. --Reuters, 7 September 2012 A courtroom format in Orkney next week will tackle the question of climate change. As part of the Orkney International Science Festival the courtroom method is bring applied. The aim is to get at the truth by bringing the two sides together, gathering the evidence from each, and subjecting it to examination and cross-examination. The Festival say that despite all the arguments about climate change, they have not heard of this courtroom-style approach being tried before, and on Monday evening (10 September) a team of Orkney lawyers and debaters will get into action. The motion itself will be: ‘That we should adapt to climate change rather than try stopping it.’ Speaking in support of the motion will be Dr Benny Peiser, the director of the Global Warming Policy Foundation, an organisation set up by Lord Lawson to challenge government policies on climate change. With him with him will be John Shade, a retired industrial statistician, with some prior professional experience in applied nuclear physics and meteorology. Speaking on the other side will be Dr Andy Kerr, director of the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation, and oceanographer Prof. Peter Wadhams of Cambridge University, who researches the Arctic ice. --Orkney International Science Festival

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