Anti-Net Zero Conference Swelters in London Heatwave
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- UK authorities issued the country's first-ever three consecutive days of red heat warnings as temperatures exceeded 35C in June, closing schools, causing sleepless "tropical" nights, and sparking wildfires in Derbyshire.
- Kemi Badenoch called Ed Miliband a "villain" who "made our country poorer" at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference in London, blaming his net zero advocacy for Britain's economic woes.
- Chris Wright, Trump's energy secretary and former fossil fuel executive, described Britain's green policies as a "tragic mistake" and expressed hope a change in UK leadership would align the country with the US.
- The Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference drew climate sceptics, anti-abortion activists, fossil fuel industry backers, and Trump officials to Olympia in west London, where attendees sweltered in 35C heat and received fans branded "Free speech never felt so cool".
- Tony Blair's essay last month, Mark Carney's rollback of Canadian green measures, the European Commission's easing of climate pressure, and UK trade unions opposed to Miliband's North Sea drilling ban have all pushed back against net zero policies.
- Trump's Iran memorandum offers $300bn in aid and ends sanctions without Tehran surrendering enriched uranium, ballistic missiles, or proxy support; Freedland argues the deal was driven by Trump's need to lower petrol prices after his approval tanked.
Why it matters: The column crystallizes how fossil fuel economics — from British political attacks on net zero to Trump's Iran capitulation driven by pump prices — remain the primary obstacle to climate action, suggesting that even record European heat in a temperate country is insufficient to overcome resistance built on energy costs and growth concerns.
