https://www.spiked-online.com/2025/04/14/if-we-stopped-using-fossil-fuels-today-billions-would-die/
The belief that climate change is the most pressing issue of our time isn’t only ill-informed, it’s dangerous. So says climate economist Bjorn Lomborg, author of Best Things First and False Alarm. Lomborg sat down with spiked’s Fraser Myers to discuss the disastrous economic impact of climate alarmism, particularly in the UK and Europe, and whether we are at the dawn of a better way forward. What follows is an edited extract from their conversation. You can watch the whole thing here.
Fraser Myers: Scepticism towards Net Zero seems to be going mainstream. Presumably, you see this as a welcome development?
Bjorn Lomborg: It’s certainly a good thing that we’re more realistic. Remember, climate change is a real problem. But it’s not the end of the world. It’s not as though there is a meteor hurtling towards Earth, and nothing else matters, which is how the conversation has been going for the past 10-15 years. This view has led to a lot of really bad policies.
Now, it’s still a problem. I don’t want to go all the way to the other side of the argument and just say ‘drill, baby, drill’, and stop caring about the climate. The important thing is to stop doing all of the stupid stuff that is costing us trillions of dollars, but isn’t helping to fix climate change. Let’s fix climate change, but let’s do it in a cheaper, more effective and smarter way.
Myers: Can you explain why Net Zero has had such a terrible impact on the economy, particularly in Europe?
Lomborg: Fundamentally, if you’re speaking about Net Zero, you very easily end up with a renewables-only approach. Solar and wind are the favourite policies at the moment. The problem is, of course, that you can’t run an economy on something that only works sometimes.
Wind and solar are great when the Sun is shining and the wind is blowing, but at other times the cost is tremendous. Most countries have storage capacity for 10 or 20 minutes of renewable power. But you need capacity for two or three months.
The more wind and solar you have, the higher the cost of energy. No country on Earth has lots of solar and wind and cheap energy. That’s why heavy industry has left Germany, because businesses can’t afford the cost of solar and wind. Instead, they move to the US or China, where energy is cheap.
By aggressively pursuing Net Zero, Germans have done something to make themselves feel good. But unless you have China, India and Africa onboard, you’re missing out on most of the emissions in the 21st century. The reality is that you’re not going to show the way by impoverishing yourself. They will look at Germany and see it as an example of what to avoid.
Myers: Is nuclear energy a viable solution here?
Lomborg: Absolutely. And the fundamental point is that, if you have paid for and built nuclear power plants, you should definitely not decommission them. Unfortunately, that is the mistake that Germany, the US and many other countries around the world have made. That’s just stupid, because you have a free, green energy supply that could last you up to 30 years.