As the UK鈥檚 new Conservative government bedded down following its triumph in the elections last week, it has reaffirmed its conviction to fight climate change, to the .
The new minister for energy and climate change, , has made clear her unequivocal backing for action to combat climate change and for the science behind it, unlike the more . This is vital in a year when a major international deal to combat global warming is expected in Paris in December.
鈥淭o those who still say that the Conservatives do not take tackling climate change seriously, let me remind them that it was Margaret Thatcher who was the first ever world leader to sound the alarm on taking action on global warming at the UN in 1989,鈥 Rudd wrote in an on Business Green website.
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Rudd also repeated the party鈥檚 manifesto claim to be 鈥渢he greenest government ever鈥, and vowed to take further action to protect the environment 鈥渋n a way that represents the lowest possible cost to consumers鈥.
But some have questioned why by vowing to withdraw support for onshore wind farms, which provide the cheapest renewable source of energy.
Wind of change
鈥淚f we have to decarbonise our economy, it would seem counterproductive to rule out the cheapest way of doing that,鈥 a spokeswoman for , representing wind and marine energy producers, told New Scientist. 鈥淲e hope the administration will take a pragmatic view towards this, so onshore wind can continue to contribute.鈥
She says that onshore wind provides 5 per cent of Britain鈥檚 renewable electricity, which is the highest proportion out of any renewable source, and the figure rises to almost 10 per cent if offshore wind farms are included. One potential way to overcome opposition might be to offer local communities a built locally, .
But overall, environmental groups and backers of climate change action , especially given her acceptance of the huge scientific consensus on climate change.
鈥淚t鈥檚 reassuring to have a politician paying attention to reality rather than living in a fantasy world where the laws of physics don鈥檛 apply,鈥 says of the Grantham Institute on Climate Change at the London School of Economics.
Meanwhile, the new science minister is historian Jo Johnson, the brother of London mayor Boris Johnson. 鈥淭here is an enormous opportunity for science and engineering to drive economic prosperity and public wellbeing,鈥 said , acting director of lobby group Campaign for Science and Engineering. 鈥淚n his new role, Jo is in a strong position to ensure science and engineering is a central feature of the government鈥檚 long-term economic plan, and I look forward to working with him to ensure the UK has the people, the funding and the policies for science and engineering to thrive.鈥
Article amended on 1 January 1970
When this article was first stated, it misstated the measure of onshore wind鈥檚 contribution to the UK鈥檚 renewable energy, and mischaracterised the energy companies that RenewableUK represents.
