COP26 officially takes place between 31 October – 12 November 2021.

Recycling plastics does not work, says Boris Johnson

Recycling plastic materials “doesn’t work” and “is not the answer” to the threat of global climate change, Boris Johnson has said.

Answering children’s questions ahead of the COP26 climate summit, the PM said reusing plastics “doesn’t begin to address the problem”.

Instead, he said, “we’ve all got to cut down our use of plastic”.

The Recycling Association said the PM had “completely lost the plastic plot”.

The association’s Simon Ellin told BBC Radio 4’s World at One programme Mr Johnson’s comments were “very disappointing” and seemed to conflict with government policy.

During the special event organised by Downing Street, Mr Johnson also jokingly suggested feeding human beings to animals to “bring nature back”.

He told an audience of eight to 12-year-olds that rather than relying on recycling, people should reduce their consumption of plastic products.

Tanya Steele, chief executive of the World Wide Fund for Nature, told the event: “We have to reduce, we have to reuse – I do think we need to do a little bit of recycling, PM, and have some system to do so.”

But the PM added: “It doesn’t work.”

Asked later about Mr Johnson’s comments, his official spokesman said the PM continued to encourage recycling – though he said relying on it alone would be a “red herring”.

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There are plans to increase recycling in England, which the government has said “typically results in lower carbon emissions in comparison to manufacturing products from virgin materials”.

“Priority goes to preventing the creation of waste in the first place, followed by preparing waste for reuse; to recycling, and then recovery,” the waste management plan for England said.

The most recent figures for England showed a recycling rate of 45.5% for household waste. Waste policy is largely set by the devolved administrations in the UK.

Each UK council collects its plastic recycling differently. A BBC analysis in 2018 showed there were 39 different sets of rules for what can be put in plastic recycling collections.

‘Bring nature back’

Ms Steele said she believed “we need to bring nature back” and added: “97% of the mass of mammals on this planet is humans and our animals, our domestic animals. Just 3% is left for the wild.”

Mr Johnson said it was “so sad”, and quipped: “We could feed some of the human beings to the animals.”

Ms Steele replied: “We could have a vote later and ask if there’s any candidates.”

The prime minister criticised drinks giant Coca-Cola for being among 12 big corporations “that are producing the overwhelming bulk of the world’s plastics”.

The company sells more than 100 billion throwaway plastic bottles each year, causing problems in countries too small to effectively recycle them, BBC Panorama has found.

Mr Johnson also signalled the government does not want to support new coal mines, as ministers face pressure to prevent a site opening in Cumbria.

And with just days to go before COP26 begins in Glasgow next week, the PM said it was “touch and go” whether the summit would deliver progress.

Millions of lives could be affected by any changes agreed at the conference – and we have devised a quiz for you to discover which policies would have the most impact.

Recycling plastics does not work, says Boris Johnson – BBC News

Regards Mark

COP26 officially takes place between 31 October – 12 November 2021.

Boris Johnson ‘very worried’ about Cop26 outcome as he names and shames Coca-Cola

‘I’m very worried, because it might go wrong and we might not get the agreements that we need’

Boris Johnson has said he is “very worried” about the outcome of the Cop26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference being held in Glasgow from Sunday.

And he has named and shamed Coca-Cola as one of the ‘big 12’ producers of plastic pollution.

The Prime Minister described it as being “touch and go” whether Cop26 would be a success. Answering questions from schoolchildren in Downing Street, Mr Johnson, said: “We need as many people as possible to go to net zero so that they are not producing too much carbon dioxide by the middle of the century.

“Now, I think it can be done. It’s going to be very, very tough, this summit. And I’m very worried, because it might go wrong and we might not get the agreements that we need.

“It’s touch and go.”

He also said that while meeting the goals of Cop26 would be “very, very difficult” he added “I think it can be done”.

Boris Johnson told schoolchildren in Downing Street: “If you look at what the UK has done, we’ve cut our own C02 emissions massively, we’ve cut coal emissions massively.”

Mr Johnson chose to host a press conference with children ahead of “perhaps the most important summit that this country has had in our lifetimes”.

Boris Johnson ‘very worried’ about Cop26 outcome as he names and shames Coca-Cola – Wales Online

Boris Johnson named and shamed Coca-Cola as being one of 12 corporations “producing the overwhelming bulk of the world’s plastics”.

He told a children’s press conference on the climate crisis: “There are about 12 companies at the moment, 12 big corporations, that are producing the overwhelming bulk of the world’s plastics.

“Big famous drinks companies that you may know but I won’t name. I don’t know why not, but I won’t name them.

“Coca-Cola, for instance, and others, which are responsible for producing huge quantities of plastic, and we’ve got to move away from that and we’ve got to find other ways of packaging and selling our stuff.”

Mr Johnson also welcomed Australia’s commitment to a 2050 net zero target.

“That was actually very difficult for Australia because Australia’s very heavily dependent on coal, on lots of carbon-producing industries and they’ve done a heroic thing, the Australians, in getting to that commitment,” he told schoolchildren in Downing Street.

“I hope that they will be joined by lots more countries in that region for the Cop summit.”

There was a lot of “peer pressure” at the summit, with countries following the example of friends and neighbours, he said.

But “it’s very, very far from clear that we will get the progress that we need”, he warned.

The Prime Minister said Cop26 in Glasgow would be “one of the defining summits of our time”.

He told the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) business and investment summit: “Cop26 marks our last best chance to begin the global push to net zero.

“And if we can use that opportunity to deliver real, substantive action on coal, cars, cash and trees, then I really do believe that we can not only keep temperature increases below 1.5 degrees, but also usher in a worldwide green industrial revolution – growing economies by cutting emissions.

“There’s no choice to be made between going green and creating jobs – they are two sides of the same coin.

“And there’s no doubt at all that green investment is the future.”

Turn the crank !

Regards Mark

COP26 officially takes place between 31 October – 12 November 2021.

WAV Comment – Joe Lycett is a British comedian.  The 1 hour special, in which he lampooned ‘Shell’ energy giant the night before the start of COP26 in Scotland was shown on British tv last night – 24/10/21.

It was a great programme in which Lycett impersonated the Shell CEO; (see video); literally talking shit about allegedly just how ‘Green’ Shell is.  Evidence provided in the programme showed that Shell may talk the green talk, but the reality is they are doing much less than their adverts present.

Have we not seen and heard things like this from others before ?

Enjoy;

Regards Mark

See him here impersonate the Shell CEO talking shit:

Shell’s climate promises lampooned in Channel 4 ad starring literal shit-talking Joe Lycett | The Drum

Shell’s climate promises lampooned in Channel 4 ad starring literal shit-talking Joe Lycett

Comedian Joe Lycett has held energy giant Shell to account for its climate promises in a shit-talking parody ad from broadcaster Channel 4.

The imposter ad was created to promote Lycett’s investigation of Shell, Joe Lycett vs the Oil Giant. In the show he will look to see whether the brand’s sustainability claims can be taken seriously, or whether there is greenwashing afoot.

In the spot, Lycett hints that the ”lots of pictures of forests and windmills” in Shell’s marketing materials may not reflect the full truth of the business’s output.

As part of the show, Lycett is seen trying to get the ad aired, likely unaware its inclusion of several fecal ejections renders it unairable. These restrictions won’t stop the ad from running as part of the episode or online, where it will accumulate many curious viewers. The ad was created by Rumpus Media and distributed by Channel 4 ahead of the Joe Lycett vs the Oil Giant’s debut at 9pm on October 24.

On commissioning the 60-minute episode, Alf Lawrie, head of factual entertainment at Channel 4, said: “Few now deny climate change, but there are powerful vested interests still trying to delay tackling it. Who better to shine his torch of truth into the dark caverns of misinformation than Britain’s most fearless – and most fun – campaigner, Joe Lycett?”

Read more:

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/oct/24/greta-thunberg-would-love-it-shells-investors-less-so-joe-lycett-vs-the-oil-giant-review

…. there is not a lot I can do about that.

Our views differ on many issues and because of that, hopefully we are NOT related.

I can though ask you please give your support to this petition asking for the British government to act more re climate change issues.

Thanks – Mark

Link: