All posts by Sophie Tyldesley
New Bill Extends Trespass Rights To Fracking Companies
The Queen’s speech contained the announcement of the introduction of a bill to extend rights to fracking companies to run pipelines under inhabited areas without land- or home-owners’ permission. This proposed extension of trespass rights to fracking companies stands in direct opposition to the coalition’s approach to wind farm developments.
Continue readingGlobalisation and low wages – are both reaching their limits?
In a talk given at the University of Southampton, Green Party leader Natalie Bennett heralded the return of Pot Noodle manufacture to Britain as a symptom of the slow-down of globalised production. Bennett claimed that, despite neo-liberal optimism, globalisation is “hitting the buffers” – the increase of wages and workers’ rights in developing countries, the […]
Continue readingOwen Paterson: one year on
At the 2011 Conservative party conference, the Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman asserted that “We have enjoyed the riches of economic growth over the last century, without fully understanding the cost. It’s a cost we can ill afford… For those who think investing in our environment and taking measures to protect it are ‘nice to have’ but […]
Continue readingIs Fracking An Issue Of Social Justice?
During a debate on BBC Radio 4’s “Any Questions?”, Baroness Julia Neuberger suggested that energy prices should be increased in a bid to tackle high demand. Neuberger’s former fellow party member Ed Davey has also taken a demand-side approach in his Energy Bill – however, his is one of carrot, and not of stick. Currently […]
Continue readingThe environment and the media
It is little wonder that action on climate change is not high on the government’s agenda when the media is working to ensure it is not a priority concern for much of the public. A study of the British tabloid press between 2000 and 2006 found that “tabloid coverage significantly diverged from the scientific consensus […]
Continue readingThe Trucost Report – The Final Nail In The Coffin For Sustainable Capitalism?
Last month, the environmental consultancy firm Trucost published a report entitled “Natural Capital at Risk: The Top 100 Externalities of Business.” The report calls into question the validity of sustainable capitalism as a new paradigm. Detailing the total “unpriced natural capital” consumed by the world’s largest industrial sectors, the report found that, in 2009, the […]
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