A consistent pattern is emerging in the UK government's plans and policies, writes Paul Mobbs: the stripping away of human rights and freedoms; the detachment of public institutions from democratic accountability; an increase of the powers of the state; and the empowerment of corporations at the expense of people. We must act to preserve our liberties, while we still can.
… while we still can. What do academy schools, fracking and international trade … This seeks to increase the number of academy schools - even where the parents [14] or the governors [15] of a school strongly object to the change. On …
New Labour’s close ties to the fast-food industry are working against the interests of public health
… was criticised last year for supplying schools with burger vouchers offered to pupils … giant also offers free course packs to schools through ‘education business … The Ecologist asked McDonald’s if its work in schools was comparable to the aggressive …
Backed up the Information Commissioner, DECC refuses to release the documents it sent to the European Commission to support its massive subsidy package for the Hinkley C nuclear plant, writes Terry McAlister. But now the case will go before a tribunal which could order their release.
… in the CPI and power price declines. Today's school leavers will be paying for HPC until … the negotiations have finished. "Today's school leavers will be paying for Hinkley … reporting by The Ecologist . Today's school leavers will be paying for Hinkley …
High ranking academics have issued a stark warning to policy makers on the future of Britain's shale gas - your best bet is that we have none that can be recovered consistent with policy objectives.
… In an article published by Warwick Business School, 'Conditions for environmentally sound … Michael Bradshaw , of Warwick Business School and Professor Jim Watson of … Professor Michael Bradshaw, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick; and Professor …
In this new age of austerity money is a perpetual struggle for the public sector and ordinary people, writes Pete Dolack. Yet central banks have squandered trillions to boost profits in the financial sector, reward speculation and push up real estate values. In fact, the world is awash with money as never before - our money. Just don't expect to get your hands on it any time soon.
… on it any time soon. There's no money for schools, no money for social services, no … investment needed to modernize and maintain school facilities is estimated to be at least … wiped out all student debt, fixed all the schools, rebuilt aging water and sewer …
Britain's new Environment Secretary is young (38), female, blonde, believes in climate change, and has floated imaginative policies to deal with it from a carbon tax to 'personal carbon allowances'. As for badgers ... her silence on the topic promises well.
… those of industrial buildings and in schools, which fell directly under her … brief: "Encouraging the use of solar in schools is a very positive development. Not … it can also generate an income stream for the school. Pupils learn about their environment …
A new report from leading physicians published today reveals the excess mortality caused by UK air pollution, writes Vanessa Amaral-Rogers. The Government has already been found in breach of the EU's Air Quality Directive, but its policies remain weak. Will it finally step up to prevent early deaths from this silent killer?
… poor air quality in our homes, workspaces and schools. The current estimate of 40,000 deaths … reduce the volume of traffic, especially near schools. Monitor air pollution effectively. … pollutants in major urban areas and near schools. These results should then be …
Easy to miss in the New Year Honours list: a little-known civil servant for 'services to pesticides regulation'. But none the less shocking for that, writes Georgina Downs. Paul Hamey MBE is the very man who has been responsible for ensuring that rural residents receive no proper protection from repeated exposure to toxic mixtures of pesticides on nearby farms. Go figure.
… fields in the locality of residents' homes, schools, children's playgrounds, nurseries, … the locality of residents' homes, as well as schools, children's playgrounds etc. There is … safety for residents, or children attending schools near sprayed fields, just successive …
The UK will soon complete a record year for solar installations, almost doubling the nation's solar capacity. But drastic and overtly discriminatory changes to support for renewables may see solar installations collapse to 1% of current levels.
… solar installations across homes, offices, schools, churches, warehouses, farms, police … as prices fall, other companies, landlords, schools, local authorities and home-owners …
Almost 60 years since the world's first commercial nuclear power station began to deliver power to the UK's grid, the industry remains as far from being able to cover its costs as ever, writes Pete Dolack. But while unfunded liabilities increase year by year, governments are still willing to commit their taxpayers' billions to new nuclear plants with no hope of ever being viable.
… a senior economic analyst for the Vermont Law School Institute for Energy and the … fivefold, according to the Vermont Law School paper [page 46]. Then there are the … on taxpayers, not investors. The Vermont Law School paper aptly sums up this picture with …
The repeated burning of England's upland moors - carried out so more grouse can be reared for lucrative shooting parties - is seriously damaging a unique and valuable ecosystem, writes Paul Brown - destroying ages-old peat, reducing its capacity to retain water, and releasing megatonnes of carbon to the atmosphere.
… change. Professor Joseph Holden, from the School of Geography at the University of Leeds … burning." Dr Sheila Palmer, also from the School of Geography at the University of …
Would UKIP be riding so high if voters knew of the party's links with powerful right-wing US corporate interests promoting fossil fuels, denying climate change, opposing gun control, and supporting big tobacco, teaching creationism in schools, healthcare privatisation and the lifting of nuclear power regulation? An Ecologist investigation exposes the real UKIP.
… big tobacco, teaching creationism in schools, healthcare privatisation and the … about to recommend teaching creationism in schools. You say they deny climate change. No …
Public Health England is guilty of gross scientific misconduct, writes Paul Mobbs, for its apparently deliberate whitewashing of the public health impacts of fracking. But it's all part of a pattern of maladministration that reaches to the heart of government.
… health impact assessments." A Colorado School of Public Health study [5] , cited … (2nd draft), Roxana Witter et. al., Colorado School of Public Health, University of …
Less than a week ago Amber Rudd was basking in the glory of the Paris Agreement. Today, she's betraying all her high-flown rhetoric as she smashes up what's left of the UK solar industry with a deep cuts in incentives to solar generators and the imposition of 20% VAT.
… need to power our homes, hospitals and schools" , said Cameron. "The good news is … rooftop schemes up to 50kW - the size of a school or small commercial building - will …
The UK's insistence on opening up the UK to fracking is symptomatic of a deeper malaise, writes Paul Mobbs. Of course we need a change of government, but more than that, we need a deeper, enduring change of the nation's governance if we are ever to effect the transition to sustainable policies on energy and environment. It's time for the UK to become truly democratic.
… of the annual financial grant to state schools pupils by 11%, from £87 to £77 ; to … the guise of preventing radicali z ation in schools, the police are highlighting …
Within minutes of Labour's election defeat its MPs were denouncing Miliband for failing to 'embrace aspiration' and alienating 'wealth creators', writes Ben Whitham. But the real problem was that he never expressed a coherent alternative to neoliberalism and austerity, presenting at best a 'Tory lite' agenda that failed to inspire. And who are the real wealth creators anyway?
… of what would become known as the 'Chicago School' of economics , a school that has in turn come to be identified …
A new report on the Channel's fisheries is a timely reminder of the ecological trend to 'simplification' as whole trophic levels are stripped away by over-exploitation, writes Horatio Morpurgo. Yet the government's profit-focused vision of 'sustainability' is missing the essential element - allowing the recovery of marine ecosystems.
… - allowing the recovery of marine ecosystems. Schools are breaking up, the gulls are …
Reports of severe flooding around the UK, widely believed to be linked to climate change, pour in. But Owen Paterson, reports Sophie Morlin-Yron, has sharply cut the budget for coping with the effects of climate change.
… UK. Bob Ward, policy director at the London School of Economics' Grantham Research …
It’s a problem more usually associated with pensioners but according to new research fuel poverty has become an issue amongst younger people – particularly students - too.
… Dr Saska Petrova, who is based at the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental …
The decision to defend capital has led to governments taking too little action too late to stop the spread of novel coronavirus.
… The UK has up until today refused to close schools despite the fact children are … take serious action, such as closing schools and providing funding for the NHS. … A large majority of EU countries have closed schools, shut down public venues and events, …
Britain's nuclear bomb test veterans suffered severe genetic damage from radiation, writes Chris Busby, and their case for compensation is being heard in the High Court today. Key to their case is evidence of similar damage inflicted on in utero babies exposed to radiation from the Chernobyl disaster, and how the dreadful health impacts of radiation cascade down to future generations.
… deny what would be obvious to a child at school. Chernobyl was mentioned as the star …
59 University of Oxford academics have signed an open letter urging the University to 'take action on climate change' by ridding its £3.8bn endowment of investments in fossil fuel companies, as hundreds march to demand change.
… Clark, current director of the Oxford Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment and …
Extreme energy in the UK is arousing extreme reactions, write Jess Elliot & Damien Short. On the one side stand citizens committed to preserving the quality of the local and global environment. And against them, a government determined to let fracking rip, and police forces prepared to ignore legal norms to suppress the growing popular resistance.
… Associate at the Human Rights Consortium , School of Advanced Study, University of … Short is a Reader in Human Rights at the School of Advanced Study, University of London and Director of the School's MA programme in Understanding and …
The giant waves that hit Cornwall's coast this weekend form part of a long term trend, writes Tim Radford. Extreme weather linked to global warming is leading to more violent and more frequent storms devastating beaches, ports, infrastructure and coastal communities on Europe's exposed Atlantic coastlines.
… coastal geomorphology at Plymouth University School of Marine Science and Engineering , UK, …