Norman Baker ruins Lib Dems chances for election

[lost in london]

Not that they stand a chance anyway but this can't help:

THE era of ultra-cheap air travel would come to an end under a new Lib Dem tax regime designed to cut harmful emissions, the party's environment spokesman said yesterday.

Norman Baker said that it was "not practicable or sustainable" to fly to Faro for £15 and admitted that green taxes on aviation would be passed on to passengers through ticket costs.


He's a special man isn't he? If he lived anywhere apart from near Lewes he wouldn't stand a chance of getting any votes at all.

 

[Gwylan]

It's not that barking. The government is already looking at this but as part of a European wide initiative.

It seems crazy to talk about ways of cutting down on harmful emissions without looking at the worst polluter of all

Obviously, I'm no fan of Norm, but I think he's on the right tracks here.

 

[Brovion]

Totally agree, air travel is far too cheap for the amount of environmental damage it causes. I've said before but if it wasn't for his unreasoned opposition to Falmer he'd actually be one of my favorite MPs.

 

[lost in london]

3% of greehouse gas emissions (or whatever they're called) comes from planes, I would have thought that there are other sources that could but stopped first (the US) before I have to pay more to go on holiday

Selfish but true.

 

[Perry's Tracksuit Bottoms]

3% of greehouse gas emissions (or whatever they're called) comes from planes, I would have thought that there are other sources that could but stopped first (the US) before I have to pay more to go on holiday

The emissions are much more harmful at Stratosphere level. In a market economy people will always take up cheap offers, so it will always take economic measures to do something about an environmental problem.

Edit: ...and I too thought Norman Baker was a good bloke until the Falmer debacle.

 

[Gwylan]

As PTB points out, the emissions from planes are much more damaging than those from automobiles.

Two other points: aviation fuel is not taxed, automobile fuel is.

And the rate of airplane emissions is rising faster than that of road transport, The UN estimates that the current 3.5% will be 15% by 2050 if current trends continue.

 

[fatbadger]

Make the polluters pay. Spot on.

 

[Jameson]

I leave it to others to state the scientific facts but this is the man that would prefer to have industrial farmland and RTA casualties/deaths along the A27 Lewes to Polegate road than a safe proper road that has a decent safety record. The man's a gimp. Of Bellotti proportions.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

He's got a point, BUT the counter argument to this was put very nicely by Simon Hoggart in the Guardian a while back. Basically he said that the net social benefit of cheap air travel outweighed the net social cost.

So cheap flights may pollute the atmosphere, but at least they let poorer people go on holiday to nice places and improve their lives.

 

[Hunting 784561]

I leave it to others to state the scientific facts but this is the man that would prefer to have industrial farmland and RTA casualties/deaths along the A27 Lewes to Polegate road than a safe proper road that has a decent safety record. The man's a gimp. Of Bellotti proportions.

Agreed. A complete grade A smug liberal know it all w*nker.

Anywhere else apart from wierdy beardy Lewes and the man would be laughed at in the street.

 

[sleepynick]

the net social benefit of cheap air travel outweighed the net social cost.

So cheap flights may pollute the atmosphere, but at least they let poorer people go on holiday to nice places and improve their lives.

What a crock of shit.

Its so difficult to quantify the 'social costs' of air pollution, and even it was possible(including the repercusssions for future generations), I would guess that it is far greater than the 'social benefits'.

Do holidays to nice places (and crappy ones) improve the lives of the poor. Certainly not when they have to come back to their polluted and dismantled communities, working in their call centres, driving in congested roads on the way to the out of town retail parks to buy their under priced (as a result of EU subsidy)and intensively-farmed goods.

God I`m depressed, cheers.

 

[Juan Albion]

This is all very well but what is he going to do about the problem of horseshit in London?

I don't think he needs to bother about that. They only have one point and are bound for relegation by Christmas.

 

[sleepynick]

I just watched Norman Baker on Newsnight talking about Hydrogen-powered vehicles.

Him and the Labour transport spokesman were doing their best to avoid giving straight answers.

Fing politicians!!!

 

[beorhthelm]

the man is a contemptuous little shit who loves the sound of his own voice far too much. While he fights against any imprvements to the A27, he has today proposed a new improved raillink between London and Edinburgh... He personifies the very concept of NIMBY.

It therfore pains me to say that, in general, what he has put forward today is largely a Good Idea. We do need to restrict the growth of air travel, improve rail in order to replace road transport of good and embrace renewable energy.

Unfortunatly, the Liberals are the last group to be able to push this agenda, as it is typically Liberal councils, activists and MPs that oppose wind farms in locations such as Cornwall and Dumbfries.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

This is all very well but what is he going to do about the problem of horseshit in London?

Or foxhoundshit in Brighton?

 

[Brovion]

I leave it to others to state the scientific facts but this is the man that would prefer to have industrial farmland and RTA casualties/deaths along the A27 Lewes to Polegate road than a safe proper road that has a decent safety record. ...

Yeah fair comment, I'd forgotten about that. Why do we have to be the only country in Western Europe with a sub-standard transport infrastructure? A27 dual-carriage way through Sussex now! That would reduce exhaust emissions immensely as traffic wouldn't keep stopping everytime the road does. Mind you it would reduce fuel consumption and therefore tax revenue so there's no chance of it happening.

 

[dougdeep]

I'd rather have our roads than Portugal's.

 

[Hunting 784561]

The roads in the south east are generally pretty good, with the unfortunate and close to home exception of east Sussex which has no motorway at all, and only very small sections of dual cariageway.

This state of affairs is also due in no small part to Gormless Norman who lobbied the government to turn down Sussex road improvements at the same time they were being approved everywhere else.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

While reducing harmful emissions is a good idea, the whole "lets tax everything bad" shows the complete lack of imagination from most politicans ( of any party ).

Any tax raised should be used to fund development of planes that use non-harmful fuels. Tax breaks should be given to companies that fund this type of development. Unfortuantely it won't happen as has been seen in the car industry. A car engine has been developed that can run perfectly on rape seed oil , yet there's no push by the Government to make car makers use it. Why ? - they would lose billions in tax !!!!

Hypocritical bastards all of them !

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

The Lib Dems could make a good start to cutting harmful emissions by sacking Norman Baker