Climateconsensus

Alexander Brown's article (Scotsman, 3 July) highlighting government plans to increase taxes on gas and petrol will not, to any noticeable extent, decarbonise the economy.

The Scottish Greens have questioned this proposal as it increases prices for everyone. The governments of the UK and Scotland have no viable plan to decarbonise the economy affordably and neither do the Scottish Greens.

High carbon dioxide emissions could be considered a type of pandemic many times worse than Covid19 and reducing emissions is the only remedy.

Reductions in carbon dioxide emissions can be achieved to a significant extent if a political consensus can convince the UK government to establish a statutory task force, such as a National Energy Authority, to run the energy sector in a way that will ensure future electricity prices are kept as low as possible and carbon emissions across all sectors are reduced.

This Authority will require the appointment of independent engineers and scientists with a track record in all aspects of developing our energy infrastructure.

To accept this proposal the agreed political consensus will need to accept that it is not possible to decarbonise our electricity power grid affordably without increasing our nuclear generating capacity by a significant amount.

Politicians claim to have listened to the experts in respect of Covid-19 and I suggest that they now listen to the experts in respect of the energy infrastructure needed to combat climate change.

C SCOTT Edinburgh