The Association of British Drivers has responded to a report from the government’s Climate Change Committee, who have suggested the introduction of road pricing with drivers paying up to £1.50 per mile to combat ‘global warming.’
ABD Environment Spokesman Paul Biggs commented: “The UK’s unilateral Climate Change Act (2008) sets targets for reducing the UK’s tiny 2% contribution to global man-made CO2 emissions, with no plan for how they might be achieved. Indeed, the act has been criticised in a peer reviewed publication as “on course to fail.” The Climate Change Committee, which was set up to give advice on how targets might be met, is loaded with New Labour cronies and ‘Green Alliance’ members, so driver bashing in the false name of climate control comes as no surprise.”
Biggs continues: “It is now established in scientific literature that recent years rises in atmospheric CO2 concentration have not been matched by rises in temperature, adding yet more weight to the significant body of scientific opinion that believes factors other than CO2 drive climate change. The missing 0.2C rise in global temperatures over the past decade was not predicted by the computer models on which the climate scare is based.”
It is interesting that this call comes shortly after the launch of a £6 million government commercial aimed at scaring families on an impending climate disaster. Apparently such extreme alarmism is needed because the public have not been convinced by sexed-up documents from lobby groups.
It is well known that the government welcomed road pricing in response to proposals from the EU, which wants it as a means of paying for its Galileo satellite extravaganza. As an excuse for road pricing, that might not go down too well with voters, though.
Unfortunately, it seems that the Conservatives have also been looking favourably at road pricing. While making a driver-friendly speech at the party conference last week, shadow transport spokesperson Theresa Villiers took a different line at a fringe meeting. She stated that her priorities included reducing carbon emissions and car use, and favoured road pricing initiatives.
The driving public knows it has already been taxed several times over for using a neglected road system, while their money is wasted on costly wind turbines, eco-towns and other green indulgences.
Surveys repeatedly show 3 out of 4 people oppose road pricing. Any politician thinking of adding to the public’s pain will put their party in the fast lane to electoral unpopularity”
