Despite its claims of climate leadership, in the last six weeks the UK government has laid on a festival of environmental malice for its citizens. Gove, Clark, Perry and co, until now masking the scent of methane and fumes by swimming in a pool of fragrant environmental rhetoric, have revealed their true colours – and green isn’t among them. Read more...
More heatwaves are coming - but UK government isn’t ready for them
Regardless of the degree to which future greenhouse gas emissions are limited, changes in the UK’s climate are locked in for the next few decades. Due to lag in the climate system, a sea level rise of 1m by 2100 is plausible, and we can expect more volatile extremes in both seasonal temperatures and rainfall. Read more...
UK climate change targets continue to fall short of Paris accord
The UK’s climate gains have thus far been a result of short-termist policies, while the window of opportunity for the government to hit Paris targets shuts.
Back in 2008, the UK took a global lead in efforts to tackle climate change by setting a legally binding target to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. Read more...
UK gets bottle deposit return scheme - but where’s everything else?
March 27 saw UK environment secretary Michael Gove give the green light to a deposit return scheme in England, which will provide a small cash sum for each bottle or can that consumers return for recycling. While a welcome move, its important to keep in mind that this is the first significant tangible policy announcement since January’s year-late publication of the 25 Year Environment Plan. Read more...
Corporate interests at centre of climate negotiations
Corporate polluters have infiltrated the world’s annual climate negotiations (COP), undermining the implementation of the Paris agreement.
Numerous instances reported by non-profit organisation Corporate Accountability include fossil fuel companies being given access through sponsorship to negotiation rooms at COP21 in Paris. Read more...
Scottish government backs the people, bans fracking
In a heart-warming and climate-cooling victory for both democracy and environment, the Scottish government plans to place an indefinite ban on fracking.
A temporary moratorium on the environmentally questionable fossil fuel extraction technique had already been in place since January 2015, with a five-month public consultation earlier this year inviting citizens’ views on whether it should be made permanent. Read more...
Big Pharma and ADHD: Stop the overprescription of harmful medication
Last time I talked about how reshaping our conceptions towards the idea that the self is dynamic and changeable - with awareness, desire, and perseverance – can lead us all on a path to betterance. This time round, I want to show how pharmaceutical giants have pushed a culture of overdiagnosis and overmedication of ADHD onto us, harming our children and our society all in the pursuit of profits. Read more...
A tennis player’s grunts may reveal whether they are likely to win or lose
It’s that time of year again. British hopes and dreams weigh once again on one shy Scotsman’s shoulders. Expectant tennis fans will throng together on Murray Mound to eat strawberries and cream and talk up their hero’s chances. Can he do it again? Read more...
Trump Sends Dictatorial Message to Media & Intelligence Community: Suck Up or Shut Up
The lessons from Donald Trump’s first press conference should be worrying for those who value the role of our institutions.
Yesterday saw Trump’s first press conference in 167 days, and boy did it deliver. Despite his unerring vagueness, we learnt a few things in the hour or so he graced us with – for the first time he agreed that Russia did play a role in influencing the election, and he detailed exactly how he will distance himself from his business interests. Read more...
Demigod Trump threatens the fabric of American democracy - even if he loses
“It’s gonna be great, it’s gonna be tremendous. You’re gonna love it”.
You need only have the faintest tickling of an interest in this year’s US election to confidently cry out the identity of the man behind quotes like this. Read more...