The European Parliament’s delegation to Copenhagen has its reputation in tatters after it has emerged that the far-right, racist leader of the British National Party, Nick Griffin will be part of the official delegation.
For anyone who may have heard Griffin’s repugnant racist views on immigration or the holocaust, it will come as no surprise that Griffin is also a climate change denier, who believes global warming is a hoax.
The fact that Griffin will be part of the official delegation to the Climate Change Summit because he sits on the Parliament’s Environment committee is a huge political coup for the racist BNP.
The far-right political party mixes many all the old far right conspiracies peddled by people like Lyndon LaRouche by saying climate change “is a global Marxist mantra that is going to be used to beat people around the head, tax us to the hilt, smash nations and impose a one-world government.”
Griffin is trying to use climate change as a political weapon to show that the BNP was not “a one-trick pony only interested in race and immigration”.
But Griffin’s foray into the debate on climate change is going to throw up some awkward questions for climate sceptics.
It will be interesting if James Delingpole, the Telegraph blogger who is a leading sceptic, will now distance himself from comments on his blog supporting Griffin such as “Nick Griffin representing the EU in Copenhagen… there is a God in Heaven after all,” and “Nick Griffin representing climate-denial. Cool!”
You may say that, in the name of freedom of expression everyone should have their say. But it is interesting that bloggers on the Telegraph site complain that if they question prominent Telegraph sceptics their posts are deleted, and yet those who support Griffin are allowed…
Other sceptics may not like the association either. Griffin has also started quoting the sceptic Richard Lindzen in speeches at the EU.
But will they distance themselves from him? I doubt it.
Luckily though Griffin will not be allowed to officially speak at Copenhagen.
Green party leader and MEP Caroline Lucas said: “This idea that somehow Nick Griffin is going to have any real influence on what happens at Copenhagen is a myth.”