Eco 'zealots' blasted as the UK's biggest threat to combating climate change
The Energy Secretary has branded eco 'zealots' the biggest threat to climate change as she claims many people are 'revolting' against net-zero policies
PA
Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho has branded eco “zealots” the biggest threat to fighting climate change, claiming many people are “revolting” against net-zero policies.
The Conservative minister claimed activists were "turning people off" their cause.
It follows Rishi Sunak's announcement last week that he was delaying the 2030 petrol and diesel car ban by five years and slowing down the phasing-out of gas boilers.
Coutinho was brought in as Energy Secretary to water down some of the net-zero commitments.
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“The biggest threat to the cause isn’t the climate change deniers, it’s the zealots who are turning people off,” she told the Spectator.
“Look at what’s happening in Europe: you can see the AfD [Alternative for Germany], a climate-sceptic party in Germany, at its highest point in decades.
“In the Netherlands, you have got the farmers’ party and in France, just yesterday, Macron said he is not going to ban boilers.”
She explained that voters in European countries “revolting” against net-zero policies because their leaders had pushed the issue too hard.
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She added that her agenda would ensure the UK “won’t see some of the revolts that we’ve seen in the rest of Europe”.
“I’ve worked with Rishi for a long time and I’ve talked to him about the environment and climate change," she said.
“We are actually safeguarding the future of climate change policy.
"What you see in Europe is that lots of people are losing faith, they see it as something that politicians are doing to them.
Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Claire Coutinho, leaves Downing Street, London, after a Cabinet meeting last weekPA“Clobbering them in their personal finances for a cause that they don’t completely understand because they see their emissions as much lower than other countries.”
She added that she has not yet invested in an electric car but said: “I drive a second-hand Ford Fiesta.”
Coutinho says she also does not own a heat pump, but did previously live in an off-gas grid home.