with mister Johnson stepping down as prime minister today, many Conservative MPs have thrown in their hats with a view to becoming the UK’s next leader. One such MP, Steve Baker, of High Wycombe, recently announced a… Tory leadership bid with a vow to dismantle climate change and net-zero policies. Mr Baker, a trustee of the Global Warming Policy Foundation, one of the leading climate skeptical think tanks, has repeatedly expressed hostility to Mr Johnson’s green measures.
Speaking to The Guardian, he said measures to halt climate change, such as paying farmers to help the environment, “were anti-human life on Earth in the name of environmentalism”.
He also vowed to expand gas production in the UK because there is “no near-term threat” from the climate crisis.
He also added that he would end the push for more wind and solar power, explaining: “They are fundamentally intermittent sources of energy.
“And therefore, if we want to maintain our standard of living and especially the industry, we have to cover those intermittent sources with something else.”
Meanwhile, the Green MP, Caroline Lucas, was shocked at the prospect of Mr Baker leading the government.
She said: “Our climate cannot be a pawn in the psychodrama of Tory leadership.”
She also added that a prime minister with Baker’s view would be “a disaster of unpredictable proportions”.
Mr. Baker’s views are inconsistent with scientists and economists alike, most of whom are pushing for a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources such as wind and solar.
The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) urges the world to halve emissions by 2030.
READ MORE: energy crisis: UK sends Ukraine £1bn from critical funds
Jim Skea, professor at Imperial College London and co-chair of the working group that compiled the assessment, said: “It’s now or never if we want to limit global warming to 1.5°C.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of large-scale extinction threats facing billions of animal and plant species due to climate change caused by human activities.
He said: “Large cities under water, unprecedented heat waves, terrifying storms, widespread water shortages, the extinction of a million species of plants and animals – this is not fiction or exaggeration.
“This is what science tells us we will solve with our current energy policy.”
While the report paints a grim picture, the scientists noted that it is not too late to limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2030.
NOT MISSING:
Boris ‘endangering’ UK gigafactory as ‘not receiving a single cent’ [REVEAL]
Rolls-Royce develops hypersonic missile that can hit Russia [INSIGHT]
Archaeologists stunned by bizarre find in ancient Petra [REPORT]