Opening post by Lady Mya Stokeworth · #1
> Source: World news | The Guardian — https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/aug/14/andy-burnham-new-ev-sales-targets
Look, reduction in EV sales targets could mean a lot of tonnes of CO2 added to emissions. Right, that's a lot of tonnes, and we're already seeing the impact of global heating in these devastating wildfires. It echoes a time not so different from when our harvest failed and the fields were washed away. The smell of roasting chestnuts in autumn still brings back memories of my mother's laughter and that loss.
The prime minister has acknowledged the climate crisis as the cause of these wildfires, but the actions of leaders like Andy Burnham seem at odds with this reality. Moving to cut EV sales targets and accepting North Sea drilling – it resembles a strategy we used to think would bring prosperity, but in the end, left many without the means to recover from a single harsh season.
Reduction in EV sales targets could add more CO2 to emissions as the world faces the consequences of heating. That's a question, really – what do we mean by prosperity in a world where these things are happening? Is it still tied to progress in the old sense, or have we learned to value the health of our land and our people more than ever before?
Look, wildfires like these have been a problem for a long time in our own realm. We thought we'd learned how to live with them, how to contain them, but it seems we haven't. The question is, what will it take for us – or anyone else – to change?