Blue & Green Daily: Wednesday 9 July headlines

Blue & Green Daily finds and summarises the top sustainability stories around the web every morning. We start with our own picks from Blue & Green Tomorrow.

5×15’s Capitalism and its Discontents, London – review

Video: Jane Ashton, Tui Travel, on the future of sustainable tourism

Focusing on green homes could save the UK over £12bn, says report

Talks begin on $1tn green goods trade deal

UK wave and tidal industry receives major boost as Crown Estate agrees commercial seabed rights

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9 July headlines

UN issued with roadmap on how to avoid climate catastrophe

The UN has been presented with a roadmap to avoid climate catastrophe, prescribing specific actions for the world’s biggest economies to keep warming below 2C. In a report prepared for the general, Ban Ki-Moon, experts from 30 international institutions set out a range of strategies for the economies responsible for more than two-thirds of global emissions. Guardian.

Environment Secretary turned down offer of a briefing on climate change from the Met Office

The environment secretary Owen Paterson turned down the offer of a briefing on climate change from the Met Office’s chief scientists made in the run up to a series of landmark reports from the UN. Paterson was criticised after the reports publication for making what critics said was an “irresponsible and immoral” analysis of the panel’s findings. Independent.

England ‘exposed’ to climate risks

England is still not doing enough to tackle the risks from climate change, government advisers say. The Committee on Climate Change says three-quarters of existing flood defences are inadequately maintained because of a cash shortage. The committee says that at current rates of investment in flood defences, flood risks for people in England will increase. BBC.

EU carbon market needs deep changes, industry panel’s Buzek says

The EU should overhaul its emissions programme to ensure it encourages investment in clean energy without recurrent market intervention, according to the chair of the industry committee in the EU parliament. Jerzy Buzek, who has been elected as head of the panel, said the EU emissions trading system has failed to stimulate a switch to low-emission technologies because of a combination of a flawed design and an economic crisis. Bloomberg.

HMRC raid on bank accounts goes against Magna Carta, say MPs

British tax authorities have been accused of attempting to ride roughshod over Magna Carta in pursuit of new powers that will allow then to raid the bank accounts of those who fail to pay their dues. MPs on the Treasury Select Committee sais they were “horrified” by the proposals, which HMRC says it needs to recover tax from 17,000 “recalcitrant debtors”. Telegraph.

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Interesting picks

Responsible business: sustainable efforts show signs of paying off – Financial Times

Welcome to London – the most toxic town on the planet – Guardian

Climate sceptics are losing their grip – Financial Times

Photo: Sanja gjenero via Freeimages