The first words on the environment have been uttered by the political parties – the Green Party of England and Wales has produced its environmental manifesto. Well done to the Greens for having the first word – is this the last word on the environment? It’s a mere 10 pages with half of them being…
Category: THE POLITICS: Ministers, MPs, government policy
Food prices may be lower after Brexit
This is an interesting article by Warwick Lightfoot, Director of Research and Head of Economics and Social Policy at Policy Exchange. Unsurprisingly, from the Policy Exchange, it is strong on the view that leaving the EU will increase competition and therefore allow food prices to drop. This would be good news for consumers – that…
Live in Scotland? Then put pressure on the SNP.
The recent debacle in the Scottish legal and conservation system over the four-year delay in doing nothing (!) over the illegal alleged killing of a Hen Harrier is a matter for Scottish legal officers and Scottish nature conservationists to sort out with the help and support of Scottish politicians. The female Hen Harrier that…
Bad Defra; bad grouse moors.
There is dancing in the streets of El Rocio this morning as news spreads of the reprimand given to the UK government (esp Defra) by the EU over the poor job done by the UK to protect blanket bogs from burning. Blanket bogs don’t prosper under a scorched earth strategy and all this crap about…
A general election for the environment?
Have you spotted that there is going to be a UK general election this June? I bet you have. This will allow all the political parties to set out their environmental policies so that we can choose between them – in theory. Don’t hold your breath! I will be rather surprised if Labour has any…
My binoculars are not happy
It’s my binoculars’ birthday today – they are 41 years old. And they aren’t happy. It isn’t just that they are feeling their age, it’s the fact that just over 50% of my fellow Brits and TM the PM have fixed it that it is on my binoculars’ birthday that ‘we’ trigger Article 50 for…
A piece I wrote for The New European
This week’s New European includes this article by me on the potential consequences of Brexit for wildlife.
Defra: friendless, clueless and hopeless
The Defra 25-year Nature Strategy is delayed – that’s not a great surprise, Defra has more or less ground to a halt on nature. The delay will be due to several factors: there is no discernable interest in wildlife conservation from any Defra minister – nor any sign of aptitude, experience or knowledge of the…
A few things
A few updates and things that caught my eye or my ear: That excellent blog, Raptor Persecution UK, is 7 today – Happy Birthday! the dawn chorus is getting going – Song Thrushes dominate the sound when I pick up the milk bottles from my doorstep in the morning new US Interior Secretary, Ryan Zinke,…
Reply from Defra
I wrote to my MP asking him to pass on my approval of what George Eustice, the agriculture minister, said about funding for grouse moors in his remarks at the Oxford Farming Conference. Here is the reply. It doesn’t say that much, but MPs, ministers, in fact all of us, like being told that we…