Isn't that cosy?

I think I see the problem…

In my last missive about the findings of a climate survey which I ran in the summer, I mentioned how many of the 2,000+ respondents felt that their voices just were not heard by those in power. They also identified that the top four perceived brakes on government action were vested interests, fossil-fuel lobbying, concentrated media ownership, and fossil-fuel marketing.

Keep those first two in mind while I tell you about a story written by a friend of mine from my openDemocracy days, the investigative journalist Adam Ramsay.

In his newsletter Abolish Westminster, he reveals that: “An employee of an organisation which lobbies for the oil and gas industry is working inside the department responsible for the UK’s climate change response … Documents secured … under the Freedom of Information Act show that a staff member described as working for ‘Fuels Industry UK/Exxon Mobil’ has been seconded into the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero since September 2024, and is due to remain until September 2026.”

Isn’t that cosy???

Your voice may not be being heard, but those of others certainly are! We need to do something about this. I’m hatching a plan, of which more later. In the meantime, you can see more by Adam here.

Thank you for reading,

Stewart