Campaigning to stop a cop-out at COP26

The thousands who campaign to combat climate change should pat themselves on the back this week, following what seems, on the surface at least, the outcome of the much-publicised COP26 Glasgow conference. I will join some of them in Truro at the weekend.

If the promises and razmataz in Glasgow amount to more than what Greta Thunberg would dismiss as “Blah, blah, blah” it will be thanks to people power and public pressure. Even in the UK, the Conservatives have been desperately greenwashing themselves in recent years in the hope of redeeming their reputation. PM Cameron famously described climate policy as “green crap” and the current PM dismissed concern for wildlife as “newt counting”. They abolished the Climate Change department, scrapped virtually every green policy introduced by the Liberal Democrats – including the Green Investment Bank, sustainable homes standards, investments in renewables – and their MPs consistently voted (15 times) against every measure to combat Climate change. So, what they now promise is a major and very welcome U turn ….if only in language.

For that we must be grateful and encourage them.