They Know, Really

Under a bold headline (that was doubtless written before even beginning to draft the article) -

Green policies are not responsible for the Tata steel crisis

- the Grauniad proceeds to cite all manner of confused and confusing stuff.  Credibility is not much enhanced by their quoting of that well-known authority and general arse John 'Bummer' Gummer: “There’s no evidence at all that there’s been offshoring of industry from Britain because of our green policies. For most industries, the energy element is extremely small and the amount of extra cost from the green levies is so small as not to be in any way crucial.”

But they do also publish this handy and illuminating graph from DECC:

Michael White in the same organ on the same day doesn't want to blame Brussels, but can evidently interpret the graph perfectly well for himself.

Last but not least, painful for progressives to admit, Ed Miliband’s 2008 Climate Change Act, which committed Britain to being a “world leader in reducing CO2 emissions” didn’t help. It now looks like the kind of vanity project which has hurt UK industry without doing much good. And don’t forget that in his “hug a huskie” phase Cameron whipped Tory MPs to vote for the bill too. It was a pricing gift to rival steelmakers, an example of the kind of moral imperialism as arrogant and self-regarding in its own way as the old-fashioned variety or more recently unilateral nuclear disarmament. What a painful learning curve we are on.

ND