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For our Christmas special episode Tom and Helen take a look back at the state of British politics this year and ask the question – Is British politics unravelling?
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SubscribeListening to the discussion, I came to a perception.
It has been a mystery to me for years why politicians have embraced net zero. Yes, I know the climate change scenarios which some sign up to and others don’t, but for me that misses the point. In the short term, this policy was incoherent and inconsistent, unpopular and damaging to British industry.
Listening to the conversation I could see, they believed it! They thought this was the future, this was the way the wind was blowing (pardon the pun). Theresa May actually thought that this was in the best interests of the country. It wasn’t simply the doom scenarios. She actually believed this was a GOOD THING. I wonder what brought her to that conclusion.
The politicians I have had any experience of are determined, intelligent and initially (before they are bought) principled people. What were they all responding to when they embraced this policy in such an enthusiastic and muddle-headed way? It can’t just have been the negative, the running away from imminent climate catastrophe. If it was, knowing that this is a global phenomenon, they would stop imports from China for example, where more coal-fired power stations are being opened every week than are being shut down in Europe.
So I still don’t get it.