Reform MS misspells ’emissions’ and ‘aluminium’ in sweary net zero rant

Emily Price 

A Reform Member of the Senedd misspelled “emissions” and “aluminium” in a video featuring his own hand-drawn diagrams on a whiteboard, as he used sarcasm and profanity to criticise the UK’s net zero policies.

Caerdydd Penarth MS Joe Martin used the video, in which he pointed at a whiteboard with a ruler, to argue that efforts to cut UK emissions will result in carbon-intensive industries simply moving overseas, particularly to China.

On the whiteboard behind him, the Reform MS had spelled “emissions” as “emmissions.”

The Welsh Government announced this week that it would aim to reach net zero by 2040 – a target that is ten years ahead of the wider UK goal of 2050.

Net zero means achieving a balance between the greenhouse gases put into the atmosphere and those taken out.

Mr Martin described net zero as a situation where the UK stops producing goods that generate emissions and instead imports them from China.

“Then you can blame everything on the Chinese,” he said, while standing in front of a whiteboard daubed with hand drawn graphs.

The Reform Member said this would mean the UK could claim its emissions were falling while the emissions associated with production increased elsewhere.

“Obviously it does go up in China by the same amount, but that’s neither here nor there,” Mr Martin said.

Moving on to mock climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, the Reform MS said she would “stop yelling at you” if manufacturing moved to China because “the Chinese do not give two shits what she thinks”.

Mr Martin’s whiteboard included a list of emissions-producing goods, including chemicals, cement and aluminium – although the Reform MS had spelled the latter “aliminium”.

He claimed the approach to net zero he had described would come with “a number of advantages”, before adding that the downside was that it “does kill your entire economy”.

Mr Martin argued nuclear power was the “long term solution”, describing it as “carbon neutral” and “safe”.

He joked that opposition to nuclear power from the Green Party was “an added bonus”, before saying Reform UK would “invest very heavily” in nuclear energy.

In the comment section beneath the video which he published to Facebook, extremist group Voice of Wales thanked Mr Martin for his “refreshing common sense”.

The group is led by two associates of English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson, one of which was convicted for his part in a huge PPI scam which targeted elderly and vulnerable people.

The Reform MS responded to the far right group’s praise with a salute emoji.

Green Party MS Paul Rock told Nation.Cymru nuclear power was not as straightforward as Reform suggests.

He said: “I’m pleased to see that Reform now recognise that carbon emissions are a global problem. It’s a shame that the video refers to both the Green Party and Greta Thunberg in such shallow, negative terms.

“Nuclear power is not the straightforward solution that Joe suggests — it takes years to commission, and creates serious problems for future generations.

“Wales can quickly become self-sufficient with renewable energy, which our geography is ideal for”

The Plaid Cymru government in Wales says its new Climate and Nature Action Plan will address climate change and nature loss together rather than as separate issues.

Cabinet Minister for Rural Resilience and Sustainability Llyr Gruffydd will bring together a Climate and Nature Board to “provide constructive challenge” and help “hold delivery to account”.

Mr Gruffydd said: “This is not about treating climate and nature as separate problems – they are connected problems and we need to respond to them in a connected way.

“In developing the plan, we will bring people, communities, partners and organisations into the process of shaping solutions, drawing on their experiences as well as the evidence.

“Together, we will look for opportunities to take action across government and society that tackles the causes of these challenges, not just their symptoms.

“This means protecting and restoring the natural systems Wales depends on, while also helping us deliver our wider commitments to healthier communities, more resilient places, a stronger and fairer economy, rural resilience, cleaner air and water, warmer homes, green skills and jobs, sustainable food and farming, and better places to live.”

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