This is one way of looking at the result of the recent by-election in Boris Johnston’s old seat of Uxbridge, and if the result is anything to go by, there is absolutely no chance that the world will act in time to avoid catastrophic climate change.
Tories took a total hammering to Labour and Lib Dems in two other by-elections, but in Boris Johnston’s old constituency in greater London, the Tories managed to hang on.
Why? Because the Labour mayor has been hell- bent on introducing a swingeing £12.50 daily charge for the use of the most polluting vehicles, based on public health grounds.
It demonstrated that although people will almost unanimously say that the world needs to act to prevent the very worst of climate change, when it comes to putting their hands in their pockets and pay out for it, then it’s a firm no, or let’s put it off for another year or two.
Thousands of Londoners who would, no doubt, have followed voters in the other constituencies and turn their back on the Tory party, deciding that keeping money in their pockets was more important.
Common sense tells us that we need to move away from the most polluting vehicles as quickly as possible – it’s ghastly when you are in a car and are stuck for any length of time behind a vehicle puffing out fumes, and who would want to live in houses beside London’s busiest streets, breathing in fumes every day?, I know I wouldn’t. And recent inquests have demonstrated that urgent action is needed to cut down pollution in cities, because lives are being lost through it.
However, If there is anything to be learned from the by-election in London, it is that change and charging must be introduced gradually, but is there enough time left for people to put their own self-interests first and the planet a poor second?
If electors are, in future, going to vote for a political party which will do next to nothing when it comes to climate change, then we must all be prepared to face ever more severe heat, storms, rising sea levels and failing crops causing huge price rises for all types of food. When the tipping point will be when the majority are prepared to suffer a reduction in living standards, goodness knows.
Ask people in the Greek islands, both residents and holiday-makers, who have experienced the result of ever dryer and hotter summers, and they will say the tipping point has already passed. No doubt those experiencing ever-hotter summers in Spain will say the same.
But this debate about climate change action versus cost goes much further than taxing polluting vehicles.
Take people living in picturesque villages and towns around the country. Yes, the population would generally support climate change action – until they are asked to have a solar farm close-by, or a wind farm, and heaven forbid if someone suggested that wind power should come from wind turbines built on the top of hills and mountains. The same old selfishness is there.
When we drive across Spain, we see many turbines stretching across the highest ground – it makes a lot of sense, because the strongest winds are at high elevations and are more consistent too. But in Britain? Oh no. Turbines are out to sea, where winds are often less strong and the turbines themselves are not likely to last as long because of sea and salt erosion.
Sadly, it seems the only way to change people’s attitudes and make them live greener lives and achieve a net-zero target by 2050, is to legislate – but has any political party in Britain the balls to actually do it and risk rebellion in the polls?
There is another dimension to the whole debate the action needed to combat climate change. While it seems that Britain’s political elite want to be seen to be taking a lead, the huge polluters around the world, China, India, the rich countries in the Arab/Muslim world and America are still pumping out greenhouse gases to maintain their economies, extracting oil and gas and pretending that the day of judgement can be put off until 2050.
So, why should the British public suffer an economic downturn and poorer living standards while many other countries are not prepared to suffer any pain?
Perhaps all this is beyond politicians to cure because the lord and masters, the electors will always act like turkeys voting for Christmas. Perhaps our future lies with the major companies acting together to rectify their polluting ways.
But will they put the environment and the planet first and put making more and more money every year into second place? I’ll let you to provide the answer.
