It is countries like Kenya which will be hit hardest by climate chaos and are striving to reduce carbon emissions. Unlike most of the industrial Global North, who which to carry on as normal, with carbon trading as the answer. Carbon Trading does not result in a reduction in carbon emissions.
low-cost-low-impact-housing-2012-high-res.pdf (application/pdf Object)
Here is a report into low-cost-low-impact housing. Unfortunately, here in Manchester, the council has demolished council housing, instead of retro-fitting the houses to improve their energy efficiency. And then handed the land over to property developers, with the stipulation that the new homes should meet code 5 of the national standards. Code 6, is the new minimum standard they should be building to, though I believe they should be built to the superior Passivhaus standards.
low-cost-low-impact-housing-2012-high-res.pdf (application/pdf Object).
The mystery of the invincible oil subsidies.
Here is a news article from the US, about the subsidies that oil and gas companies receive. The UK Government also provides subsidies to oil and gas companies. An example of this, is the reduction in corporation tax for the North Sea oil and gas operators. As the video infers, this is because of the level of political donations received by the politicians. Except in the UK, it is Party political donations that are the problem along with lobbyists. And a great number of the British public are not aware of these subsidies, and blame their high energy bills on subsidies for renewable technology. Renewable technology receives a fraction of the subsidies the oil and gas companies receive. And nowhere near the £50 billion the nuclear industry has received so far. And it will cost more than £50 billion for the clean-up of the decommissioned nuclear plants.
Remember, Walmart owns ASDA.
Faiza Shaheen – Budget 2012: Inequality set to rise | the new economics foundation
A fair assessment of the budget and what it really means for the majority.
Faiza Shaheen – Budget 2012: Inequality set to rise | the new economics foundation.
More Co-operative Group jobs under threat | Manchester Evening News – menmedia.co.uk
The Co-operative Group, which makes a big play on being a co-operative and being ethical. It is neither, as it is actually run as any business model, and is concerned solely on maximising profits. Not serving it’s members or communities it has shops in. Their business model is the complete opposite to that of the Rochdale Pioneers.
More Co-operative Group jobs under threat | Manchester Evening News – menmedia.co.uk.
Government increases Beer Duty, yet again.
As Ed Milliband has stated, this is a millionaire’s budget on top of axing the 50p tax rate and other measures which ensure this country remains a tax-haven for the most corrupt. Here is a press statement about the Government’s increase in Beer Duty from CAMRA. Beer being the ‘working-classes’ preferred beverage for socialising with. Unlike Spirits and Champagne which Gordon Brown did not increase duty on. And it is spirits, most of which is imported, is the cause in the increase in young people being admitted to A&E and increasing health problems.
CAMRA- ‘Beer drinkers rocked by tax man swallowing a third of every pint’
– Consumers fight back as CAMRA urges its members to back e-petition to scrap beer tax escalator
– Sign e-petition today at www.camra.org.uk/saveyourpint
New increases to push up price of a pub pint by 5-10p
Issued: Wednesday March 21st 2012
The Campaign for Real Ale, has today lambasted the Government for its careless approach to one of Britain’s most valued institutions, the pub, as a further inflation plus 2% increase on beer will bring about yet more price rises at the bar, and further job losses in the sector.
With around £1 on every pint going to the Treasury in beer duty and VAT, CAMRA has reacted to today’s news by urging its 136,000 members and all pub goers to sign an industry backed e-petition to remove the beer duty escalator- www.camra.org.uk/saveyourpint. The e-petition has today been backed by CAMRA, the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), and the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA).
With the beer and pub industry supporting almost 1 million jobs and contributing £21 billion to UK GDP, CAMRA has condemned the Government for imposing punitive successive tax increases, which will impact both breweries at production level, and drinkers at the bar.
Mike Benner, CAMRA Chief Executive, said:
‘The fact Britons are forced to pay over 40% of the EU beer tax bill, but consume only 13% of the beer sold in Europe, is remarkable. British beer in a pub is so heavily hit with duty and VAT, the tax man’s whirlwind hikes translate to him guzzling a third of every pint served, a shadow cast over the beer drinker depriving people of an affordable night down their local.
‘Such high taxes on beer are totally unsustainable, and therefore CAMRA is launching a consumer fight back in a bid to make the Government see sense. We today urge all beer drinkers to visit www.camra.org.uk/saveyourpint to get behind this new industry-backed e-petition to help safeguard the future of the beer and pub industry.’
BBC News – Fracking: Concerns over gas extraction regulations
A Newsnight report on ‘Fracking’, will our politicians take notice.
BBC News – Fracking: Concerns over gas extraction regulations.
The problem is not just isolated to the USA, as an ABC programme shows: http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/special_eds/20110221/gas/default.htm
In Australia, it involves coal-seam methane extraction, which a company wanted to start on Chat Moss, Salford.
Thought for the day – The Share Centre
Reading the article below, Michael Baxter does state the obvious about Britain’s transport infrastructure. But why do are politicians, Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrats not able to see this?
But here are some observations. It is well known that transport systems across most of the developed world are more efficient than those in the UK. You only need to spend a short while on French or German or, indeed, Japanese, railways to see the difference. A couple of years ago, I drove through France – from one end to the other – and didn’t get stuck in a single traffic jam, not one.
Part of the explanation lies with geography. Britain, especially England, is crowded. That explains – at least in part – why it is so much quicker driving through France than through Britain. (But then Japan is pretty crowded too.) But there is another difference. Across much of the developed world there is just an acceptance that infrastructure needs to be subsidised. And the main reason why the transport infrastructure is so superior across much of the developed world is because more money is spent on it. Japanese and French trains do not run faster and more punctually because of some inherent quality. They spend more money, plain and simple. And, on the whole, these obviously superior infrastructures are not outsourced to a coterie of private contractors, either.
The argument against new nulear.
In an article on the Share Centre web-site, they mentioned Jonathon Porritt’s article in the Guardian, which they add a further argument against new nuclear:
Admittedly he is a tad biased, but Jonathon Porritt has written a good piece arguing against a new programme of building nuclear power stations. See: How the UK is handing control of its energy future to France One of the bits of information presented in the piece you may want to make note of is that the four previous nuclear power stations built by the company that will probably be responsible for the UK stations took an average of 17.5 years to construct. There is an important point here that Mr Porritt did not actually mention in his article, which is surprising because it supports his case. The energy industry is currently subject to considerable innovation. Technology used for renewables is becoming more efficient every year. In 17.5 years’ time, wind, solar, tide and hydro-electric power will be much more efficient than it is today, perhaps more efficient than traditional fossil fuels. (Although, probably never enough to fulfil all of the UK’s needs). And yet in making the case for building a nuclear power station that will take one and half decades to build, the nuclear power supporters look at the current cost of renewables.
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