Herald letters

ARE three significant closures this week merely virtuesignalling to a disinterested world how we alone are reducing our relatively minimal emissions in the unrealistic hope of reaching net zero without regard to the inevitable damaging consequences to jobs, living standards, national security and our economy generally?

The first is the closure of our last coal mine (“Watchdog turns down bid for licences to open first coal mine in 30 years”, The Herald, October 1), the second the closure of our last coal-fired power station (“End of an era as last coal-fired power station in UK shuts down”, The Herald, October 1) and the third the closure of our last steel-making blast furnace (“End of era in steelmaking as blast furnace is closed at Port Talbot”, The Herald, September 30). Does anyone really believe these closures will persuade any of the hugely-emitting countries such as China, India, Russia and the USA to follow our lead?

What does the future hold as we shiver while relying increasingly on unreliable renewal energy, perhaps welcoming warmer weather due to climate change? Also we will need to rely on imports of what we need but in which we are no longer self-sufficient while more and more of the countryside is despoiled by the relentless march of pylons and windmills. In the Second World War we were nearly brought to our knees as the U-boats targeted the shipping convoys supplying our needs. Will we not be vulnerable again as we rely on imports such as coal for our gas-fired power stations until, of course, they are closed, and the hard steel we can no longer make? The irony (pun intended) of the latter is that as the hard-steel-making blast furnace at Port Talbot is closed by its Indian owner, in India they are constructing a new blast furnace from which we will no doubt import our hard steel in future.

Does all of this bring into question whether our political masters have a clue how to govern pragmatically in our best interests rather than in the zealous pursuit of an unachievable goal which in global terms will have little or no beneficial effect?

Alan Fitzpatrick

Dunlop