20 h. ago Half of world’s CO2 emissions come from just 32 fossil fuel firms, study shows

Critics accuse leading firms of sabotaging climate action but say data increasingly being used to hold them to accountJust 32 fossil fuel companies were responsible for half the global carbon dioxide emissions driving the climate crisis in 2024, down from 36 a year earlier, a report has revealed.Saudi Aramco was the biggest state-controlled polluter and ExxonMobil was the largest investor-owned polluter. Critics accused the leading fossil fuel companies of “sabotaging climate action” and “being on the wrong side of history” but said the emissions data was increasingly being used to hold the companies accountable. Continue reading...

Events

41 h. ago Hilton, Butlin’s and Travelodge warn prices may rise for customers – and Rachel Reeves’ Budget changes are to blame

BOSSES of leading hotels and holiday parks are calling for a financial lifeline amid a rise in business rates. More than 130 top accommodation firms have written to Rachel Reeves saying increases will not be easily absorbed and could push up prices for holidaymakers. Firms such as Butlin’s, Hilton and Travelodge have joined forces to...

Economics

60 h. ago Bill Gates charity trust’s holdings in fossil fuel firms rise despite divestment claims

Trust had $254m invested in companies such as Chevron, BP and Shell in 2024, a nine-year record, analysis showsThe Gates Foundation Trust holds hundreds of millions of dollars in fossil fuel extractors despite Bill Gates’ claims of divestment made in 2019.End-of-year filings reveal that in 2024 the trust invested $254m in companies that extract fossil fuels such as Chevron, BP and Shell. This was a nine-year record and up 21% from 2016, Guardian analysis found. Adjusting for inflation, it was the highest amount since 2019. Continue reading...

Economics

7 d. ago Water firm boss warns households with no supply that bills must rise anyway

South East Water chairman Chris Train said customers must pay more to prevent further shortages, despite East Grinstead, West Sussex, and Tunbridge Wells, Kent having no reliable supply

Events

7 d. ago Jockey caught drink driving at Appleby Horse Fair ‘can’t be trusted to hold a licence’

Nathan Evans tested over the legal limit when breathalysed only 18 days after being re-licensed having told BHA officials he no longer drank alcohol

Events

1 week ago Petrol and diesel lorry ban considered by Labour in latest part of their controversial net

Ministers have announced that fossil fuel-powered trucks will no longer be sold and have ruled out allowing the continued use of low-carbon or synthetic fuels.

Events

1 week ago Alan Carr doesn't trust anyone after divorce in heartbreaking romance confession

Celebrity Traitors winner Alan Carr opened up about being 'walked over' in past relationships and admitted he 'doesn't trust anyone' in candid chat with Amanda Holden

Politics

1 week ago Scots firms will be 'pushed to the brink' by impending business rates rise

The Scottish Chambers of Commerce (SCC) has said that companies across all sectors in the country are facing ”dramatic jumps” after business rates were revalued.

Economics

1 week ago Trump news at a glance: president pitches oil companies on major extractions in Venezuela

‘We’re going to be extracting numbers in terms of oil like few people have seen,’ Trump said – key US politics stories from 9 January 2025Donald Trump had a message for fossil-fuel companies on Friday: Venezuela is now “open for business” as the US president vowed the country’s resources would be extracted for the benefit of the US, oil companies – and “some” money for Venezuelans.At a roundtable press conference at the White House with more than a dozen oil executives, including leaders from Chevron, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, the US president doubled down on claims that Nicolás Maduro’s arrest presents American oil companies with an unprecedented opportunity for extraction. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Some want to ban geoengineering research. This would be a catastrophic mistake for our planet | Craig Segall and Baroness Bryony Worthington

We’ve already geoengineered the planet through the careless release of greenhouse gases. Now we need a plan to manage the risks we’ve set in motionA few months ago, Marjorie Taylor Greene, then a Georgia representative, held a hearing on her bill to ban research on “geoengineering”, which refers to technological climate interventions, such as using reflective particles to reflect away sunlight. The hearing represented something of a first – a Republican raising alarm bells about human activity altering the health of the planet. Of course, for centuries, people have burned fossil fuels to power and feed society, emitting greenhouse gases that now overheat the planet.Unfortunately, her hearing waved past an urgent debate that policymakers are confronting around the world: after centuries of accidental fossil-fuel geoengineering, should we deliberately explore interventions to cool the planet and give the energy transition breathing room?Craig Segall is the former deputy executive offi...

Science

2 w. ago We can safely experiment on reflecting sunlight away from Earth. Here’s how | Dakota Gruener and Daniele Visioni

Reflecting a small fraction of incoming sunlight to reduce global heating is not a new idea. It is time to safely experimentThe world is warming fast – and our options to avoid catastrophic harm are narrowing. 2024 was the first full year more than 1.5C hotter than the 19th-century average. Emissions are still rising, with fossil fuel use expected to hit a new high in 2025. Permanent carbon removal technologies – often cited as a fix – are removing just tens of thousands of tonnes annually, almost nothing relative to the 5-10bn tonnes needed. Cutting emissions and scaling carbon removal remain essential. But they may not be enough.As suffering grows and ecosystems unravel, more people will ask: is there anything we can do to prevent these harms? The idea of reflecting a small fraction of incoming sunlight to reduce warming is not a new idea. In 1965, Lyndon B Johnson’s science advisers proposed it as the only way to cool the planet. Earth already reflects about 30% of incoming sunli...

Politics

2 w. ago UK firms expect record rise in ‘Sunshine Saturday’ holiday bookings

Passenger demand is predicted to be five per cent higher this year, said the UK Civil Aviation Authority

Politics

3 w. ago Greenwashing, illegality and false claims: 13 climate litigation wins in 2025

Legal action has brought important decisions, from the scrapping of fossil fuel plants to revised climate plansThis year marks the 10th anniversary of the Paris agreement. It is also a decade since another key moment in climate justice, when a state was ordered for the first time to cut its carbon emissions faster to protect its citizens from climate change. The Urgenda case, which was upheld by the Netherlands’ supreme court in 2019, was one of the first rumblings of a wave of climate litigation around the world that campaigners say has resulted in a new legal architecture for climate protection.Over the past 12 months, there have been many more important rulings and tangible changes on climate driven by legal action. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Seven environmental wins across the US in 2025 despite Trump

Environmental advocates notched key wins at local and state levels this year despite Trump rollbacksAs 2025 draws to a close, environmental advocates across the US find themselves weighing a year marked by both setbacks and successes.Despite major environmental reversals taken by the Donald Trump administration including loosening fossil fuel rules and weakening endangered-species safeguards, conservationists, lawmakers and researchers still notched key wins at local and state levels. Continue reading...

Politics

4 w. ago Tesla sales fall across Europe again as BYD surges; Ryanair fined €256m by Italy’s competition authority – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsToday’s European car sales data shows that hybrid-electric cars (which have a fossil fuel engine and a rechargable battery) account for 34.6% of the total EU market this year.Since January, 3,408,907 hybrid-electric cars have been registered in the EU, with growth in the four biggest markets: Spain (+26%), France (+24.2%), Germany (+8.7%), and Italy (+7.9%). Continue reading...

Economics