In his previous incarnation as Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, our new monarch, King Charles III, was not averse to the use of greenhouse gas emitting private jets and helicopters. Earlier this year, before he became king, the Telegraph told us that “Prince Charles took more than 20 private flights within the UK ‘to avoid being stuck in traffic’”. Furthermore:

…the annual Sovereign Grant report revealed that he took several flights during the last financial year, including hopping between engagements in Northern Ireland and Wales and a 70-mile trip from London to RAF Brize Norton, in order to catch a charter flight to Jordan.

The Prince and the Duchess of Cornwall also appear to have flown separately to Wales by helicopter from their respective homes, Highgrove in Gloucestershire and Ray Mill in Wiltshire.

The couple took more than 15 charter flights, including to and from Belfast, and multiple journeys from residence to residence – including Glasgow to Northolt last July and Northolt to Marham to Aberdeen in December.

It comes as the Duchy of Cornwall, the Prince’s landed estate, outlined its ambition to reach net zero carbon by the early 2030s.

The question is whether confusion will continue to reign now that he is king. Perhaps it will, since confusion seems to extend to the Government too. Just three days ago the BBC told us that “King Charles will not attend climate summit on Truss advice”. We were reminded:

At last year’s COP26 conference, King Charles – or Prince Charles as he was then – was one of the star turns, delivering a passionate call for world leaders to adopt a “war-like footing” over climate change.

I’m not sure what a war-like footing amounts to, but whatever it is, it obviously doesn’t extend to being stuck in traffic jams when you can fly over them in a helicopter or in a private jet instead.

Whatever. Today we learn that “King Charles should attend climate summit, COP26 president says”. So, will he go? Will any UK head of state go?

Ms Truss has not said whether she will attend COP27, suggesting that the UK may have neither a head of government nor a head of state in attendance.

Meanwhile, apparently, “COP27: Activists ‘baffled’ that Coca-Cola will be sponsor”.

Campaigners told the BBC the deal undermines the talks, as the majority of plastics are made from fossil fuels.

Coca-Cola said it “shares the goal of eliminating waste and appreciates efforts to raise awareness”.

This year’s COP27 UN climate talks are hosted by the Egyptian government in November in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Egypt announced it had signed the sponsorship deal last week.

At the signing, Coca-Cola Global Vice-President, Public Policy and Sustainability Michael Goltzman said: “Through the COP27 partnership, the Coca-Cola system aims to support collective action against climate change.”

But opposition to the decision has grown over the past week over Coca-Cola’s links to plastic pollution. Climate activists are accusing the company of “greenwashing” and more than 5,000 have now signed a petition calling for the decision to be reversed.

The company admitted in 2019 that it uses three million tonnes of plastic packaging in a year.

Found on every continent and in the oceans, plastic is a major source of pollution. Its production also contributes to global warming.

But then, so does flying, and we are constantly being encouraged to avoid flights, especially unnecessary ones. Yet, according to CarbonBrief “[a]lmost 40,000 delegates registered for the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) climate summit, the provisional list shows, suggesting that the Glasgow event is the biggest COP to date.” Will another 40,000 descend on Sharm el-Sheikh (arguably a more congenial venue than Glasgow in November)? Will masses of greenhouse gases be spewed into the atmosphere yet again this year, for the 27th time, in the name of reducing greenhouse gases? Probably. Confusion reigns.

56 Comments

  1. The madness of the green extremists has reached that of arguing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.

    Like

  3. +10
    “I’m not sure what a war-like footing amounts to, but whatever it is, it obviously doesn’t extend to being stuck in traffic jams when you can fly over them in a helicopter or in a private jet instead.”

    Like

  4. Let’s face it, if you believe in anthropogenic warming you should stop breathing because you are partly responsible. Also stop passing wind. Doubt whether the Royals will do that !?

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Thankfully, the UN that organises the COP beanos, also names (and should shame) all attendees in its annual lists published at around the time of each COP.

    COP26 Glasgow: 39,509 attendees

    Click to access PLOP_COP26.pdf

    COP25 Madrid: 22,354

    Click to access cp_inf4.pdf

    COP24 Katowice: 22,771

    Click to access PLOP.pdf

    EcoBusiness analysis informs: “Leading the table at COP24 is Guinea with 406 delegates. This is 86 fewer than they sent last year, but still puts it in first place with 169 more people than the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in second.”

    Greenpeace flew (most of its) 48 delegates to COP22, Morocco, in 2016.
    Since then, after much ridicule, it’s tended to not ‘block book’ places.

    Liked by 1 person

  6. COP23 Bonn: 19,115

    Click to access PLOP.pdf

    COP22 Marrakech: 25,903

    Click to access misc02p03.pdf

    COP21 Paris: 30,372. Published in 3 parts
    Pt 1: Afghanistan – Lao People’s Democratic Republic

    Click to access inf03p01.pdf

    Pt 2: Latvia – Zimbabwe
    ….. inf03p02.pdf

    Pr 3: Intergovernmental organizations (East African Community – The Regional Organization for the Conservation of the Environment of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden); non-governmental organizations
    …… inf03p03.pdf

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  8. “Eco warrior King Charles took two 112-mile helicopter trips in 24 hours to attend opening of new Africa centre in London where he talked about climate change”

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11692483/Eco-warrior-King-Charles-took-two-112-mile-helicopter-trips-24-hours.html

    King Charles took two helicopter trips in 24 hours to open the new Africa Centre in London where he discussed the effects of climate change.

    The Monarch opted to fly the 112 miles from the Royal Sandringham estate in Norfolk to London, where he joined in a discussion about how the effects of climate change in Africa could be mitigated.

    It is estimated his total journey of 224 miles would have used hundreds of gallons of aviation fuel….

    …Last summer it was revealed that Charles and Camilla took more than 40 private flights between them in 2021 to travel around the UK and Ireland, including to the UN Climate Conference COP26 in Glasgow….

    Liked by 1 person

  9. “Sunak uses helicopter and jet for short trips within 24 hours
    PM flew to London from Dorset on Wednesday evening and then back to south-west England the next morning”

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/feb/09/rishi-sunak-uses-helicopter-jet-short-trips-24-hours

    Rishi Sunak returned to London from Dorset by helicopter on Wednesday evening and flew back to south-west England by jet the next morning, Downing Street has said, in the latest example of the prime minister’s fondness for short-distance air travel.

    Sunak, who has made recent private helicopter trips to his constituency in North Yorkshire, was at Lulworth military base in Dorset for a press conference with the visiting Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, on Wednesday.

    The next morning he visited a family hub in St Austell, Cornwall. But rather than stay overnight and travel the 140 miles between the engagements, Sunak flew to and then from London, a round trip of nearly 400 miles.

    “He flew down this morning. I can’t say how he’s getting back,” Sunak’s official spokesperson said, confirming the flight to St Austell was in a jet. The prime minister left Dorset by helicopter, the spokesperson added. This is understood to have been an RAF Chinook….

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  10. Even the Guardian accepts that there is no suggestion on wrongdoing on the part of Rishi Sunak, but for the PM of a “net zero” government, his behaviour increasingly looks like a case of “do as I say, not as I do”:

    “Rishi Sunak has electricity grid upgraded to heat his private pool
    PM will pick up cost of upgrade work in North Yorkshire, and no suggestion he received preferential treatment”

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/mar/12/rishi-sunak-has-electricity-grid-upgraded-to-heat-his-private-pool

    Rishi Sunak’s new private heated swimming pool uses so much energy that the local electricity network had to be upgraded to meet its power demands, the Guardian has been told….

    …extra equipment was recently installed in a remote part of North Yorkshire to provide extra capacity from the National Grid to the prime minister’s constituency home.

    This followed Sunak’s construction of a new heated swimming pool, gym and tennis court in the grounds of the manor house he occupies at weekends. Engineers had to install a substantial amount of equipment and a new connection to the National Grid that runs across open fields.

    Sunak will personally pick up the cost of the electricity upgrade work – estimated to have cost tens of thousands of pounds – in addition to the ongoing cost of energy consumption for the swimming pool….

    …Sunak bought the home for £1.5m in 2015, shortly after becoming the MP for the constituency of Richmond. He still regularly visits the house, although he often eschews the direct rail service from London to nearby Northallerton in favour of a personally funded helicopter trip….

    Liked by 1 person

  11. “EU chiefs flew to UN climate talks in private jet
    European Council President Charles Michel hopped on a private jet for 72 of 112 official trips.”

    https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-presidents-charles-michel-ursula-von-der-leyen-private-jet-climate-talks/

    The EU’s joint presidents flew to last year’s U.N. climate talks in Egypt aboard a private jet, according to data seen by POLITICO that revealed heavy use of private flights by European Council President Charles Michel.

    The flight data, received through a freedom of information request, shows that Michel traveled on commercial planes on just 18 of the 112 missions undertaken between the beginning of his term in 2019 and December 2022.

    He used chartered air taxis on some 72 trips, around 64 percent of the total, including to the COP27 talks in Egypt last November and to the COP26 summit in Glasgow in 2021. Michel invited Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on the flight to Egypt.

    The EU presidents’ choice of transportation to the climate talks highlights a long-standing dilemma for global leaders: how to practice what they preach on greenhouse gas emissions while also facing a demanding travel schedule that makes private aviation a tempting option — even a necessary evil…

    Liked by 1 person

  12. I’m thinking of writing a song:

    Michel, ma menteur
    These are words that go together really, really badly
    Just like the juxtaposition of your words and actions
    You flaming hypocrite

    Needs a bit of work but I’m sure it’ll be a massive hit.

    Liked by 2 people

  15. “King’s green energy firm was investigated after 38-day greenhouse gas leak”

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/apr/09/king-charles-jv-energen-green-firm-38-day-gas-leak

    Health and Safety Executive also issued several notices related to worker safety and explosive substances at JV Energen

    A green energy company set up by King Charles was investigated for numerous health and safety breaches after the unauthorised leak of more than 1,000 tonnes of global-heating gases.

    Methane, CO2 and traces of the toxic gas hydrogen sulphide were released after a gas-holder at the plant split open in 2020. The incident, which lasted for 38 days, was described as “significant” by the Environment Agency.

    Like

  16. from your link –
    “As a producer of green energy, the plant has been eligible for significant government subsidies. These are worth more than £4m a year to JV Energen. Since its launch in 2012, the company has received more than £28m in state subsidies, according to data analysed by the Guardian.”

    well £4m (maybe more) per yr for 10 yr = £40m ?

    ps – Guardian leads, will the BEEB follow I wonder!!!

    Liked by 1 person

  17. “European Council chief’s costly private jet use in spotlight
    Charles Michel denies running up ‘extravagant’ bills and says higher costs stem from Covid pandemic and Ukraine war”

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/13/european-council-president-charles-michel-travel-spending

    The president of the European Council, Charles Michel, has denied running up “extravagant” travel bills, after his use of private jets came under scrutiny…

    …His comments came after Le Monde reported on his use of costly private jets, including for short hops to Paris, as well as other cities well served by commercial airlines, such as Berlin and Vienna. According to a document published on his European Council webpage, Michel flew from Brussels to Paris in February for a meeting on combating terrorism in the Sahel, at a cost of €4,379 (£3,867), rather than take the frequently running fast train service that connects the cities in a 1hr 22min journey. He routinely uses private jets, which are up to 14 times more polluting for each passenger than commercial flights, for his trips to the European parliament’s second seat in Strasbourg, with costs ranging from €1,283 to €9,049 for his return-trip ticket alone.

    The total costs cited by Le Monde were significantly higher, however, because the public register does not disclose the costs of transporting Michel’s officials. Citing copies of travel bills it had seen, Le Monde reported that the total cost of the private jet to the Paris dinner to discuss the Sahel was €35,750, while the bill for one Strasbourg trip alone came in at €35,000, once the charges for Michel’s entourage were factored in.

    Last November a journey by private jet taking Michel and his entourage to Beijing to meet China’s leader, Xi Jinping, cost€460,000; only Michel’s €32,895 travel costs were publicly declared. At the time, some senior EU diplomats raised eyebrows at the trip, as Michel travelled without the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, who oversees EU law and trade deals that could affect China…

    Like

  18. “Coronation flypast could be called off due to adverse weather, MoD says
    Finale involving 60 aircraft may be scaled back as Met Office forecasts cloudy and wet weather in London”

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/may/04/king-charles-iii-coronation-flypast-weather-forecast

    The coronation flypast is at risk of being scaled back or cancelled because of poor weather forecast for Saturday, the Ministry of Defence has said.

    A tri-service, six-minute flypast of 60 aircraft, including the Battle of Britain memorial flight, the Red Arrows, modern F-35s and Typhoons, is planned as a finale to the coronation day celebrations.

    Surely our new climatically alarmed monarch should have vetoed any suggestion of an unnecessary GHG-spewing flypast in the first place?

    Like

  19. Scotland’s “Green” minister avoids the green option:

    “Green minister Lorna Slater criticised for using private ferry”

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-65570607

    Scottish Greens minister Lorna Slater has been accused of hypocrisy for using a private ferry for an official visit to an island.

    The boat was hired to take a group of eight people, including Ms Slater, to Rum on Friday morning.

    The Scottish government said it would ensure the best value for taxpayers and allow Ms Slater to “maximise time on the island”.

    But the Conservatives questioned why Ms Slater did not take a CalMac ferry.

    And they predicted that the government’s decision to hire a private boat would anger islanders struggling to access lifeline ferry services….

    …Donald Cameron, a Tory MSP for the Highlands and Islands, said the Greens were “forever lecturing the public on the need to use public transport” but Ms Slater was “happy for the Scottish government to charter a private boat to take her to and from Rum”.

    He added: “Her excuse for doing so – that, essentially, the CalMac timetable doesn’t suit – will go down like a lead balloon with Scotland’s island communities.

    “Those who rely on lifeline ferry services don’t have the luxury of hiring a private boat to travel.

    “Instead, they are dependent on an ageing and unreliable CalMac fleet they’ve been lumbered with due to the scandalous incompetence of the government Lorna Slater is at the centre of.”

    He accused Ms Slater of “breath-taking” hypocrisy and lack of self-awareness, and added that the “tone-deaf indifference to them” was “another kick in the teeth to betrayed islanders”.

    A Scottish Labour spokesperson said: “This is stunning hypocrisy. While island communities are facing serious disruption to ferry services, Lorna Slater is chartering a private boat.

    “The Greens are out of touch with working people and nothing more than the SNP’s little helpers. Scotland deserves better.”…

    Like

  20. “James Cleverly’s use of £10,000 an hour Succession-style jet ‘ludicrous’
    Exclusive: UK foreign secretary has been using type of private jet featured in hit TV show for Caribbean and Latin America tour”

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/may/22/james-cleverly-use-of-private-jet-described-as-ludicrous-extravagance

    It’s interesting that Cleverly is coming under attack from Labour for extravagance (and I would agree with that line of attack), but not one word of criticism is regarding his unnecessary “carbon footprint”.

    From the beginning of 2021 to the end of 2022, there were 31 occasions where foreign secretaries – Dominic Raab, Liz Truss and Cleverly – chartered private jets or used one of the government’s fleet of ministerial planes to travel overseas, at a combined total cost of £4.6m.

    Yes, it’s a lot of money – very possibly a waste of money – but it’s as nought compared to the sums dished out every day on sundry net zero projects.

    Like

  21. “Sunak takes helicopter to Yorkshire – via stopoff just two miles from an airport
    PM visits billionaire family near Manchester on way, raising further questions about his travel habits”

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/may/26/sunak-takes-helicopter-yorkshire-stopoff-two-miles-from-airport

    Rishi Sunak used a helicopter to travel to his Yorkshire constituency on Thursday, with a stopoff to visit a billionaire family who live only two miles from a large airport.

    Flight records show the prime minister took off from a private heliport near parliament in London on Thursday afternoon, landing about an hour later, very close to Manchester airport.

    The trip will raise more questions about Sunak’s repeated use of helicopters for relatively short trips, especially one where the first stop was an eight-minute drive from the airport….

    Like

  22. “Charles Michel’s flights: Green … or greenwashed?
    The EU leader wants to buy more carbon credits to offset his extensive air travel, but the practice faces increasing scrutiny.”

    https://www.politico.eu/article/charles-michel-flights-green-or-greenwashed-jet/

    European Council President Charles Michel is vying to keep greening his image with a scheme increasingly criticized as greenwashing.

    Just weeks after coming under fire for his heavy use of private jets, the EU chief tasked with corralling the bloc’s 27 leaders is seeking to purchase more carbon credits as the miles rack up.

    According to a little-noticed bid for a contract posted on the EU’s public database, the Council is looking to purchase “carbon credits to offset the CO2 produced during the flight travels of the President of the European Council.”

    In effect, that means the Council is trying to cancel its airborne carbon footprint by supporting carbon-reducing projects elsewhere.

    It’s a tactic Michel’s team has employed and touted before. Since 2021, for instance, the Council says Michel’s private flights have been offset by support for a Brazilian ceramics factory switching to renewable energy. And starting in 2022, the funding has covered all of Michel’s flights.

    But doubts have increasingly plagued the concept of carbon offsets — commodities meant to represent carbon avoided or absorbed from the atmosphere — as mounting investigations show their contribution to reducing carbon emissions is largely exaggerated.

    It’s a “fake climate solution,” said Jo Dardenne, aviation director at Brussels-based clean mobility NGO Transport & Environment. Companies and individuals use it, she added, to “clear their guilty conscience when they board fossil-guzzling private jets.”

    The re-up of the Council’s carbon credits contract comes after POLITICO and others reported on the extent of Michel’s time spent aloft. Earlier this year, POLITICO revealed that Michel had spent €1.7 million on travel in 2022, and wanted to increase his travel budget by 12 percent in 2024. Michel went on 46 official trips abroad in 2022, flying privately 28 times and taking only eight commercial flights….

    …Over the course of Michel’s term, which began in 2019, the Council president has gone on 112 missions abroad, chartering private flights for close to two-thirds of them.

    Like many world leaders, Michel also took private air taxis to COP climate talks in Egypt in 2022 — sharing his plane with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen — and to Scotland in 2021, part of a multi-leg journey that included a G20 summit….

    Like

  23. “Sunak takes RAF chopper to Dover, just over an hour away by train
    Prime minister shows his fondness for helicopters again a week after flying in one to his Yorkshire constituency”

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/jun/05/sunak-takes-raf-chopper-to-dover-just-over-an-hour-away-by-train

    Rishi Sunak has taken an RAF helicopter from London to Dover, despite the trip being just over an hour by train.

    The UK prime minister once again showed his fondness for choppers on Monday, when he flew from a private helipad in London to the Kent port in an RAF AugustaWestland helicopter for a speech on small boat crossings.

    It is believed he also flew back to London afterwards.

    There are regular trains from three central London stations to Dover, with high-speed services from St Pancras taking just over an hour. A peak-time adult return costs as little as £48…

    Perhaps surprisingly, the Guardian’s campaign against Sunak’s penchant for helicopters concentrates on the cost to the taxpayer, rather than focussing on the emission of unnecessary CO2. That does strike me as odd, given both the Guardian’s obsession with CO2 emissions and also the fact that it campaigns for billions – if not trillions – of pounds to be wasted on net zero.

    Like

  24. “German Military Plane Dumps 200,000 Litres of Jet Fuel into the Atmosphere on Two Failed Attempts to Fly Germany’s Foremost Green Politician to Australia”

    https://dailysceptic.org/2023/08/17/german-military-plane-dumps-200000-litres-of-jet-fuel-into-the-atmosphere-on-two-failed-attempts-to-fly-germanys-foremost-green-politician-to-australia/

    Last Sunday, Germany’s ridiculous Green Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock departed for a week-long tour of Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. The purposes of the trip were, as usual, fairly hazy. Her flight would demonstrate that “despite the great distance”, Germany and the Pacific are “closely connected by common values and a common view of the world”, and that we can “rely on each other and support each other as strategic partners”. Apparently, performing these close liberal connections for the media requires the massive carbon emissions of long airplane flights, even for a Green politician who is in general opposed to air travel for ordinary people and once toyed with a proposal to ban all domestic flights in Germany…

    …Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who has priority in booking government flights, had dibs on the only available modern and reliable aircraft in the fleet, an Airbus A350. She had reserved it for a separate trip to Australia to observe the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Faeser cancelled her girl-power spectatorship exercise after the early elimination of the German team, but the Luftwaffe could not rebook the flight, because too few of their personnel are qualified to fly the modern aircraft. Baerbock had to take a 23-year-old Airbus A340 instead. This plane was once called the “Konrad Adenauer” after the first chancellor of the Federal Republic, but they scrubbed his name from the livery sometime after a serious incident in 2018, when it lost all electrical power on an abortive flight to bring Angela Merkel to the G20 summit in Buenos Aires. The Berliner Zeitung reports that the A340 was itself a short-notice replacement for another Bundeswehr airplane that ended up being grounded because of unnamed technical problems.

    Baerbock and her entourage departed Germany on their rickety aircraft without incident, landing to refuel at Abu Dhabi late Sunday or early Monday morning. They took off again at 3:33 am bound for Australia, but the pilots found they could not retract the landing flaps. They had to dump 100,000 litres of fuel to make the overweight plane fit for landing. When jets dump fuel at altitude, it is aerosolised; the small droplets eventually decay into water vapour, ozone and carbon dioxide, all of which would normally contribute to the greenhouse effect, but as in this case the fuel was released on behalf of Germany’s leading Green climate botherer, we can be assured that the action had if anything an emissions-reducing effect.

    Back at the Abu Dhabi airport, Baerbock opted not to continue to Australia via a vastly more climate-friendly if considerably less comfortable commercial flight; throughout her tenure in Scholz’s cabinet, she has used government planes for 70 trips, while flying commercial only a handful of times. After repairs, the A340 departed on a second attempt for Australia at 1am on Tuesday. Yet again, the flaps jammed, forcing the pilots to dump another 100,000 litres of fossil fuels into our carbon-laden atmosphere. Defeated and the subject of international mockery, Baerbock returned to Hamburg via a commercial Emirates flight on Tuesday….

    Like

  25. “The King Is Criticised for Making Four Ministers Fly 400 Miles to His Scottish Mansion on Taxpayers’ Dime to Discuss Carbon Emissions”

    https://dailysceptic.org/2023/09/17/the-king-is-criticised-for-making-four-ministers-fly-400-miles-to-his-scottish-mansion-on-taxpayers-dime-to-discuss-carbon-emissions/

    The King is being accused of environmental hypocrisy and wasting taxpayer money for flying in ministers to his Scottish mansion… to discuss climate change. The Mail has the story.

    The King was facing criticism last night for forcing four Cabinet Ministers – including the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt – to fly 400 miles to his private mansion in Scotland for a taxpayer-funded meeting.

    He was accused of an “outrageous waste of money” and climate hypocrisy because the meeting was held partly to formally appoint the new Net Zero Minister in charge of cutting carbon emissions.

    Mr. Hunt, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, Privy Council President Penny Mordaunt and Energy and Net Zero Secretary Claire Coutinho all flew on the same plane to Ayrshire for the Privy Council meeting on Friday at taxpayers’ expense. …

    Former Lib Dem MP Norman Baker, himself a Privy Council member, said the King’s decision to host a meeting of the council in Scotland “drives a coach and horses through any claim he has to be interested in the environment”, adding: “This is an outrageous waste of money by King Charles.”

    Liked by 1 person

  26. “Humza Yousaf ‘right’ to travel to New York for climate talks – minister”

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-66842054

    It is right that Humza Yousaf has flown to New York for talks about the climate crisis, Scotland’s net zero secretary has said.

    Mairi McAllan backed the first minister’s decision to travel more than 3,000 miles for in-person talks about reducing global emissions.

    Mr Yousaf is to deliver a speech at a Climate Week summit on Monday.

    He will call for action to deliver loss and damage funds for countries facing the worst impacts of climate change.

    Ms McAllan, secretary for transport, net zero and just transition, said Holyrood ministers “think very carefully” about attending events in person or participating remotely.

    She told BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “I, myself, have been to New York Climate Week, representing the country.

    “I understand the argument about reducing travel – it’s something we bear in mind.

    Yeah, right. I understand that Sadiq Khan has flown out there as well.

    Like

  27. “Oliver Dowden takes near-empty RAF plane to UN talks in New York
    Labour criticises deputy PM’s decision to use 158-seat Voyager instead of a scheduled service as ‘wrong on every level’”

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/sep/20/oliver-dowden-raf-voyager-plane-flight-un-new-york

    Oliver Dowden flew on a near-empty RAF plane to the UN general assembly in New York this week, the Guardian has learned, prompting criticism that he wasted taxpayers’ money and caused unnecessary damage to the environment.

    The deputy prime minister travelled on a 158-seat RAF Voyager with only a few advisers and defence personnel, sources said. The aircraft is usually used to transport senior ministers with large delegations of officials, journalists and occasionally business executives….

    Like

  29. “Eco-activist King Charles will use Christmas day broadcast to deliver powerful message about the environment to millions of viewers across the country”

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/royals/article-12897209/King-Charles-Christmas-day-broadcast-environment.html

    The King will use his Christmas broadcast tomorrow to deliver a powerful message about the environment.

    Charles has long championed green causes and will use his platform to make a timely point about living more sustainably to the millions of viewers tuning in.

    While the precise contents of the address are a closely guarded secret, the eco-friendly theme is apparent in the way the message has been filmed.

    His Majesty recorded his speech in Buckingham Palace earlier this month in front of a living Christmas tree – potted with its roots intact rather than one which has been cut down. And all its decorations are environmentally friendly, too, crafted from plants or made from recyclable material….

    …The King’s acknowledgment of environmental issues is apparent in the decorations on his ‘living tree’ which are all recyclable or biodegradable – including hand-turned wooden bells, dried sliced oranges, blown glass baubles and pine cones….

    Well, we’re all in favour of sustainability, but most of us just use and re-use year after year decorations purchased years, or even decades ago. And it’s all a bit rich coming from someone whose air miles (mostly in private jets or helicopters) are mind-blowingly large.

    Liked by 1 person

  30. My advice if you want to be eco-friendly AND preserve brain cells on Christmas Day is switch off the TV and unplug it from the mains so it doesn’t waste energy on standby.

    Liked by 1 person

  33. Mark – Love the quote – “We did use a private jet, because we needed to get very quickly to Scotland from Wales yesterday, and we had to use the most efficient form of transport in the middle of a very, very busy general election campaign,” Sir Keir said.

    “We offset the carbon, we always do whenever we use transport in the air. That’s the approach we’ve taken, but it is a practical situation.”

    Well many UK people would also like “the most efficient form of transport & add heating” option Sir.

    Like

  34. Isn’t this wonderful?

    “King’s Bentleys to go more green in 2025”

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c880mg120jjo

    The King’s two state Bentleys will be converted to run on biofuel within the next year, as part of a wider sustainability push.

    Longer term, the plan is to switch to a fleet of official electric cars.

    Annual accounts for the Royal Household, published on Wednesday, revealed a string of new, more environmentally friendly measures….

    ...Windsor Castle will be fitted with solar panels for the first time while the gas lanterns at Buckingham Palace are being repurposed with specially designed electrical fittings to improve their energy efficiency while keeping their historic look and glow.

    Sir Michael Stevens, Keeper of the Privy Purse, said the environmental initiatives were “driven by a determination to place sustainability at the heart of our operations and inspired by His Majesty’s leadership in this sphere”….

    Well, if that were true, what’s this about?

    …The annual accounts were delayed for a month because of the General Election.

    They revealed the royal household would take delivery of two new helicopters over the coming year, to replace the existing 15-year-old ones.

    The report said the helicopters were “a key component” in enabling the King and the royal family to carry out their engagements, allowing them to access remote regions of the UK….

    ...Taken as a whole, the report said there had been a decrease of 3% in natural gas and heating emissions across the Royal Estates, although total greenhouse gas emissions did however increase slightly from the previous year.

    This was largely due to increased business travel emissions in comparison with 2022-2023, when royal travel was limited by events around the change of reign….

    Liked by 1 person

  35. I know HRH’s job involves travel, but his green posturing is a bit rich, given this:

    “Royal family to replace helicopters after flights cost more than £1m last year

    Two new AgustaWestland AW139s will be in use this year as total annual travel bill rises from £3.9m to £4.2m”

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/jul/24/royal-family-helicopters-flights-cost-travel-official-accounts

    The royal family spent more than £1m on journeys by helicopter last year, and will take delivery of two new ones to replace those they have used for the past 15 years.

    In total, royals made 170 helicopter journeys, costing a total of £1,096,300, official accounts reveal, with the total travel bill last year rising to £4.2m from £3.9m.

    Aides have defended the amount of helicopter usage, which has drawn criticism over its environmental impact, because it gives royals flexibility and easier access to remote areas, as well as allowing for a greater number of engagements in a day. The royals are also increasingly using sustainable aviation fuel.

    The two new AgustaWestland AW139s are considered a “key component” in enabling King Charles and the royal family to carry out their engagements, and will replace their Sikorsky helicopters later this year. Because of the cost of replacement, the aim will be to maximise usage and “sweat the assets”.... [My emphasis]

    Liked by 1 person

  36. No wonder HRH is keen on offshore wind:

    “Crown Estate to make billions of pounds from Miliband wind farm spree

    Swathes of subsea land to be rented out as Government plans offshore turbine building boom”

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/07/24/crown-estate-make-billions-ed-miliband-wind-farm-spree/

    The Crown Estate is poised to rake in billions of pounds from Ed Miliband’s green energy blitz, as it rents out swathes of Britain’s seabed to offshore wind farms…

    Liked by 1 person

  38. “‘A real pioneer’: King Charles seeks to embody green values in royal estate

    Changes include converting Bentleys to run on biofuels but helicopter use shows difficulties in balancing priorities”

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/jul/27/king-charles-royal-family-bentleys-green-sustainability-environment

    “…helicopter use shows difficulties in balancing priorities“. You can say that again.

    ...The king’s devotion to environmental causes has not inhibited the royal family from taking delivery in the coming months of two new helicopters to replace the existing 15-year-old models.

    “The use of helicopters is a key component of delivering engagements by his majesty, as head of nation,” the report said. However, the new helicopters will be able to operate with 50% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), the maximum industry standard….

    So that’s all right, then.

    …The royal electric bill rose from £1.3m in 2023 to an estimated £2.2m this year, although this was attributed to a change in tariff rather than an increase in consumption.…

    What’s the new tariff? A “green” one? My electricity bill hasn’t increased by 75% in a year!

    …Emissions from royal business travel were 17% higher than the previous year, mainly because in 2022 there was a drop due to Queen Elizabeth’s death and King Charles’s accession. “Travel emissions will continue to fluctuate each year depending on requests from government for tours involving long-haul charter flights,” the report said.…

    Maybe we should just abolish the monarchy altogether, then. Surely that would be the greenest thing we could do?

    Like

  39. Prince William could overturn king’s windfarm ban as he orders renewable energy review for estate

    Wind turbines are among changes being considered by heir to the Duchy of Cornwall estate to tackle the climate crisis

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/jul/27/prince-william-renewable-energy-review-duchy-cornwall-estate-wind-turbines

    His father thinks windfarms are a blot on the landscape, once saying he feared Britain would end up like Denmark “knee deep in these damn things”. But now Prince William is considering overturning their effective ban on royal land.

    The Prince of Wales has ordered a major review of renewable energy on his 130,000-acre Duchy of Cornwall estate, which is expected to change the face of his hereditary property empire stretching across 20 counties in England...

    …In spite of his opposition to onshore wind, the king too supports turbines out at sea and will see his official income rise by 53% to £132m in 2025-26 because the sovereign grant is benchmarked to the booming £1.1bn annual profits of the Crown Estate, which owns the seabed up to 12 nautical miles from the mainland….

    Liked by 1 person

  40. “King Charles’ €500K lobster dinner blows hole in French presidency’s budget

    A state dinner with the U.K.’s king cost the French nearly €500,000.”

    https://www.politico.eu/article/lobster-fill-royal-dinner-dig-hole-french-presidency-budget-king-charles-emmnuel-macron/

    …The dinner, during which guests enjoyed blue lobster and rose macaroons cost the French presidency close to €475,000 — including over €165,000 on catering and over €40,000 on wine (including a bottle of 2004 Château Mouton Rothschild) and other drinks….

    Like

  41. Good luck with this. Sir Keir has hardly been at home since Labour formed the goivernment, and Ed Miliband and David Lammy seem very keen of flights abroad too:

    “Politicians flying less or cutting out meat is ‘missing link’ in climate action

    Exclusive: Study suggests people more willing to reduce own carbon footprint if they see leaders doing the same”

    https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/oct/04/politicians-flying-less-cutting-out-meat-missing-link-climate-action-study

    Political leaders “walking the talk” on climate action by flying less or eating less meat could be a “crucial missing link” in fighting global heating, according to a study.

    Researchers found that people are significantly more willing to reduce their own carbon footprint if they see leaders doing the same. The finding, by psychologists in the UK, was not a given, as green action by high-profile people can sometimes be dismissed as virtue-signalling.

    The study also found that people were significantly less willing to change their behaviour when leaders do not lead by example. The former prime minister Rishi Sunak took 40 helicopter and small jet flights within the UK while in office, according to a freedom of information request by the Guardian….

    ...Politicians failing to lead by example can also lead to people feeling that global heating was not a crisis, he said, despite the clear scientific evidence. “The urgency of their words [on climate] doesn’t seem to be matched by the signals they send through their behaviour. I think many leaders are still sending the signal that no emergency response is required.”...

    It’s about time that COPs became virtual events, then, surely?

    Liked by 1 person

  42. “James Cleverly spent £655 a head on in-flight catering for one-day trip to Rwanda

    FOI request reveals then home secretary spent £9,803.20 on catering for flight to Kigali to sign deportation deal that never deported a single person”

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/oct/21/james-cleverly-spent-655-a-head-on-in-flight-catering-for-one-day-trip-to-rwanda

    The in-flight catering for James Cleverly’s one-day round trip to Rwanda last December, while he was home secretary, cost £655 a head.

    Cleverly spent £165,561 chartering a private jet for his 11-hour visit to Kigali to sign Rishi Sunak’s deportation deal after the supreme court’s finding that Rwanda was an “unsafe country”.

    He travelled to Kigali with officials and a TV crew on 4 December and signed the new legally binding treaty alongside Rwanda’s foreign affairs minister, Vincent Biruta.

    It can now be revealed that the catering for the eight-and-a-half hour return flight for Cleverly and his 14 officials cost £9,803.20, or £653.55 a head, according to a freedom of information response given to the Labour party. The TV crew paid for their own food.

    Government officials said the catering bill includes the transportation costs of cooking equipment, which would also be accrued on a scheduled commercial flight, as well as the food and drink.

    Cleverly, now the shadow home secretary, also spent £22,324.50, or £1,488.30 a head, on in-flight catering while travelling to Japan, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, New Zealand and Indonesia in July 2023....

    Appalling. I’d love to see the equivalent figures for Labour’s first three months in office – they seem to be flying all round the world as if there’s no tomorrow.

    Like

  44. I think I’m with the critics on this one – after all, hypocrisy is not a good look:

    “Wrexham criticised for flying to away match”

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwy7v1z45d8o

    Wrexham AFC have come under fire after using a private jet to fly to and from a League One away game against promotion rivals Wycombe Wanderers.

    The plane, chartered from Jersey, travelled a total of 1,178 miles (1,896km) to take them on a 37-minute flight instead of a three-hour coach journey for the match on 15 March.

    In the same month, the club’s co-owner, actor Ryan Reynolds, pledged to the United Nations to “engage with and advocate” for sustainable goals aimed at making the sport more environmentally friendly....

    ...The team were only on the plane for about 250 miles out of the almost 1,200-mile total trip, with the flight taking them from Hawarden Airport in Flintshire to Oxford.

    The jet flew from Jersey to Hawarden to pick the team up on 14 March, before flying to Oxford and returning to Jersey....

    ...Wrexham took 16 flights domestic flights in their promotion season from the National League two years ago.

    Meanwhile, research from 2023 found Premier League clubs took 81 flights out of 100 games in a two-month period, with the shortest being 27 minutes....

    …The video also called Reynolds hypocritical for visiting the UN in New York to join Football for the Goals, external, a UN initiative aimed at making the sport more sustainable.

    But do they also criticise all the COPs attendees for their private jet trips to and from the climate junkets?

    Meanwhile, Sunderland AFC are also doing well in the hypocrisy stakes:

    “Iconic crest returns to highlight climate change”

    https://www.safc.com/news/2025/march/14/iconic-crest-returns-to-highlight-the-impact-of-climate-change/

    Sunderland AFC’s playing wear will proudly display a unique crest this weekend, as the Club utilises its platform to highlight the devastating effects of climate change...

    ...This latest Club initiative forms part of its Ready Eco sustainability strategy, which underlines our aspiration to become energy-sufficient from renewable sources by 2028 and achieving net zero by 2040. 

    The strategy is underpinned by a proposed solar development at the Club’s training ground, one of the largest in the UK, which would produce an estimated yield of 26,192.4MWh and could offset the equivalent annual energy needs of 9,421 homes within the region, whilst contributing to local and national carbon reduction targets.’ ...

    Then there’s this from last season regarding plans to prepare for this season (which will probably be replicated this summer in preparation for next season:

    “Pre-season 2024: Black Cats heading to Spain”

    https://www.safc.com/news/team-news/2024/march/pre-season-2024-confirmed

    Sunderland AFC will travel to Spain this summer as part of their preparations for the 2024-25 season.

    The Lads will depart for Costa Blanca on Monday 15 July and spend one week in Alicante, which is located in the Valencian Community on the Mediterranean coast.

    SAFC will face two fixtures overseas and these are currently scheduled to take place on Saturday 20 July and Sunday 21 July...

    …Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman said: “Following last summer’s tour of North America, we are looking forward to taking the team back to mainland Europe this July. The facilities in place for this trip are exceptional and this will not only provide a great experience for our players, but also act as an excellent platform for the team ahead of the 2024-25 campaign. We hope this will be an accessible trip for many of our fans and that they can attend to support the team, whilst also enjoying the region. In addition, we also plan to host a range of activities during pre-season – locally and overseas – to bring our fans closer to our team.”

    By the way, as well as being completely bonkers at 55 degrees north, the solar project isn’t going down well locally:

    “Attempts to block football club’s solar farm continue”

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clly5gy4p46o

    A campaign to block a proposed solar farm has reached almost 1,000 signatures over fears of its impact on local wildlife.

    Sunderland AFC has submitted plans to build a 40MW solar farm next to its training ground in Cleadon, South Tyneside.

    The site encompasses 118 acres (48 hectares) of greenbelt land which campaigners believe could destroy a wildlife corridor….

    Like

  45. “Luton airport expansion approved by government”

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4vg2d9v7no

    London Luton Airport hopes to almost double annual passenger numbers to 32 million by 2043 after the government approved expansion plans.

    It came despite the Planning Inspectorate recommending Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander rejected them over environmental concerns....

    …However, environmental campaigners said “with climate change worsening, the last thing any of us need is 70,000 more aircraft a year”.…

    …A spokesman for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he was “pleased” with the decision.…

    …Countryside charity CPRE added the expansion made “a mockery” of the government’s “commitment to reaching net zero by 2030”.…

    Except, of course, that’s not what the government has committed to, so if the CPRE really has said that, they’re not paying attention. They are, however, correct that announcements such as this make a mockery of the government’s net zero plans, so I’m looking forward to the announcements that net zero is being abandoned and that Ed Miliband has resigned.

    Liked by 1 person

  46. “David Lammy Spends Over £1 Million on Private Jets in Three Months”

    https://dailysceptic.org/2025/04/03/david-lammy-spends-over-1-million-on-private-jets-in-three-months/

    ...The Foreign Secretary’s air travel bill rose to £1.2 million between October and December 2024, with the vast majority going on private flights.

    It equates to more than £14,000 per day, with the lion’s share spent on trips on a ministerial jet, according to the Guido Fawkes political blog.

    There is no suggestion Mr Lammy’s use of private jets is out of kilter with his predecessors.

    However, it risks a hypocrisy row for Labour Ministers, who previously lashed out at the Conservatives over their own use of private flights.

    In October 2023, Rachel Reeves, now the Chancellor, promised a “crackdown on Tory ministers’ private jet habit” if Labour came to power.

    She said: “We will enforce the ministerial code on the use of private planes and save millions of pounds for taxpayers in the process.”...

    Liked by 1 person

  47. “Denying two MPs entry to Israel ‘unacceptable’, says Lammy”

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn9133z2v30o

    Lammy’s take on this story, as revealed by the headline, is certainly one aspect of it. But there is another one:

    …Yang, the MP for Earley and Woodley, and Mohamed, the MP for Sheffield Central, flew to the country from Luton airport on Saturday with two aides, according to reports.…

    …in a statement the UK Foreign Office confirmed the group was part of a parliamentary delegation.…

    In view of the “climate crisis” (sic) why was it felt necessary to send a Parliamentary delegation to Israel, over and beyond whatever the Foreign Office is doing by way of diplomacy? How many people were in that delegation (given that these four – two MPs and two aides) were only “part” of it? Given the financial crisis, why send them at all, and what has it cost the UK taxpayer? Finally, just as in the case of the Labour MPs calling for a new airport in Pakistan (while voting against the Heathrow extension because of the overriding importance of net zero – sic) wouldn’t their time be better spent looking after the concerns of their constituents at home?

    Like

  48. “King Charles will have to tone down support for net zero after Badenoch says 2050 is ‘impossible’

    Constitutional expert says Tory leader’s break from political consensus over target for greenhouse gasses will require monarch to choose his words carefully”

    https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/apr/05/king-charles-will-have-to-tone-down-support-for-net-zero-after-badenoch-says-2050-is-impossible

    ...Senior royal sources have conceded that the 76-year-old monarch, who has spent more than half a century highlighting environmental challenges, will have to choose his words more carefully now that the Conservatives under Badenoch have said it will be impossible for the UK to hit net zero by 2050.

    “The only way that we can regain it [trust] is to tell the unvarnished truth – net zero by 2050 is impossible,” the Conservative leader said last month.

    Charles III has spoken publicly about how vital it is to hit net zero by the 2050 target date, set by Theresa May’s government in 2019 and agreed upon by subsequent administrations. Successive prime ministers have used the king’s long track record on campaigning for climate action to help promote Britain’s leadership on combatting the challenges.…

    Liked by 1 person

  52. H/t Paul Homewood:

    “Labour climate envoy racks up 76,000 air miles in eight months

    Net zero diplomat bills taxpayers for flights equivalent to circling the Earth three times”

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/net-zero/labour-climate-envoy-racks-up-76000-air-miles-eight-months/

    Labour’s climate envoy has billed the taxpayer for flying the equivalent of three times the circumference of the Earth, The Telegraph can reveal.

    Rachel Kyte travelled by aeroplane on more than a dozen trips since becoming the Government’s top diplomat for net zero in September, despite admitting her carbon footprint was “a source of deep discomfort”.

    The majority of Ms Kyte’s flights were business class and have cost taxpayers a total of £38,769, according to a Freedom of Information request made by this newspaper.

    Ms Kyte has previously spoken of air travel’s negative impact on the environment and said that partly as a result she has felt personally conflicted about flying at times.…

    As Paul Homewood says:

    If you are so concerned, why are you flying business class?

    Liked by 1 person

  55. “Gatwick given green light for £2.2bn second runway plan

    Heidi Alexander approves expansion to allow 100,000 more flights a year”

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/sep/21/gatwick-given-green-light-for-22bn-second-runway-plan

    …Alexander backed the scheme as a “no-brainer” for economic growth, a government source said on Sunday, suggesting flights could take off from the new full runway by 2029.…

    No-brainer? There are quite a few of those where net zero is concerned, but this sort of logic doesn’t apply to most of the agenda. Why is that?

    Like

  56. Yes, it’s a no-brainer, but it’s entirely incompatible with their avowed emissions goals (except perhaps international flights are not allocated to individual countries).

    Like

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