Cosima Zaveta: Electric cars aren’t as green as you think

Cosima Zaveta, Research Assistant at Bright Blue, was featured in CapX, detailing that electric vehicles, despite being portrayed as a zero-emission form of transport, continue to release emissions in the form of particulate matter.

Cosima described, “Like conventional vehicles, electric vehicles emit dangerous pollutants through tyre and brake wear, as well as road surface abrasion. A long-standing focus on our vehicles’ exhaust pipes has earned electric vehicles the title ‘zero emission vehicles’, but this is only right as far as exhaust fumes are concerned. Really, electric vehicles are only ‘zero exhaust emission vehicles.”

You can read Cosima’s piece here.

Government adopts Bright Blue policy to introduce a UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism

Bright Blue responds to the Government’s announcement that they are launching a consultation on a UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.

Bartek Staniszewski, Researcher, commented:

“As we target net zero, it is imperative that our domestic industries remain competitive against their more carbon-intensive, foreign competitors, and that foreign industries do not use this as an opportunity to increase their own emissions and undermine our own net zero efforts.

A Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will penalise imports that seek to undercut our domestic production and send out a strong signal that carbon-intensive industries will find it difficult to conduct business in the UK.

However, trade barriers are a regrettable cost. A CBAM should be coupled with free trade agreements with countries that adopt a similar commitment to lower emissions”

Bright Blue recently called for a UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism in our reports Green money and Carbonless crucible.

Government adopts Bright Blue policy to increase fines for littering

Bright Blue responds to the Government’s decision to increase the maximum fine from £150 to £500 for littering, and £400 to £1,000 for fly-tipping. 

Commenting, Eve Redmond, Research Assistant: 

“Both littering and fly-tipping have not only caused significant adverse impacts on local environments, they have also cost the taxpayer millions of pounds to clean up. The PM’s decision to significantly increase fines for those who engage in these activities is, therefore, a very welcome one.”

Bright Blue recently proposed that the UK Government should increase fines for littering to £500 in our 2020 report, Global Green Giant.

Bright Blue's Report, 'Greater and Greener Homes', praised in ConservativeHome

Bright Blue’s recent report, ‘Greater and greener homes’, has been commended by Cllr Jane MacBean as showing that “we can tackle climate change and build more homes at the same time.”

The report recommends the use of green technology such as solar panels to save households money on their energy bills and help the nation on the way to net zero and calls for new regulations to support that transition.

You can read Cllr MacBean’s piece in ConservativeHome here.

Click here to read our report ‘Greater and greener homes’.

Max Anderson: Time to get tough on litter

Bright Blue’s Max Anderson wrote in ConservativeHome about Bright Blue’s report, ‘Picking up the Pieces’.

Max regarded, “Littering harms local communities, destroys local ecosystems, and costs the taxpayer millions of pounds every year. Effective use of third party enforcement services by local authorities could be a cost-effective way of greatly increasing the number of FPNs issued. Doing so would be a popular and effective solution to cleaning up our streets and our country.”

You can read Max’s piece here.

Bright Blue report, 'Picking up the Pieces', featured in the Sunday Express

Bright Blue’s November 2022 report, ‘Picking up the pieces: tackling littering and fly-tipping in England’, was featured in the Sunday Express.

Joshua Marks, the co-author of the report, stated “Fly-tipping and littering ruin neighbourhoods and cost the taxpayer millions to clean up every year. Littering ought to be a higher priority for both local and central governments. Ensuring that we enforce our current littering laws more forcefully is necessary to protect our high streets.”

You can read the full article here.

Ryan Shorthouse: Times letters: Pay Farmers For Cleaner Rivers

Bright Blue’s Chief Executive, Ryan Shorthouse, featured in The Times’ letters this week with a plea to replace regressive agricultural policy.

The letter stated, “payments should reward farmers for providing goods that are not currently valued by the market, such as cleaner rivers. Environmental payments will help food security by incentivising soil improvements, more pollinators and natural pest management.”

You can read the piece here.

Bright Blue's Senior Researcher, Joshua Marks, featured in the Guardian

Bright Blue’s Senior Researcher, Joshua Marks, was featured in the Guardian in September 2022.

The article analysed whether Liz Truss’ government would adopt or weaken green policies. Joshua was mildly optimistic and suggested that net zero policies tie in with many pressing concerns. He stated, “But net zero ties in with so many pressing concerns, such as the cost of living this winter and next winter, so the government must recognise that solving this crisis is not possible without reducing energy consumption and going for renewables.”

You can read the full article here.

Roz Bulleid and Wilf Lytton: Towards a green future for British steel

Bright Blue’s report, ‘A carbon crucible’, was written about in CapX recently by Roz Bulleid and Bright Blue’s associate fellow, Wilf Lytton.

Reporting on Bright Blue and Green Alliance’s partnership on the policies required to create a sustainable future for UK steelmaking, it was stated that “supporting the steel industry to urgently decarbonise needs to be a priority.”

You can read the article here.

Joshua Marks: Freezing green levies won’t relieve pressure on bills but we must make them equal

Writing in City AM, Bright Blue’s Joshua Marks urged the Government to make the green levy more progressive for short- and long-term benefits.

Joshua stated, “The current design of the green levy is inherently regressive since poorer households spend a higher proportion of their income on energy compared to richer households. Adjusting the system so those who have higher carbon footprints pay more to fund the net zero transition will help alleviate the cost of the green levy on those who cannot afford it, without sacrificing our renewable ambitions.”

You can read the full article here.

Bright Blue's Senior Researcher, Joshua Marks, featured in City AM

Bright Blue's Senior Researcher, Joshua Marks, was recently featured in 1828

The article argues that removing green levies, suggested by the two finalists for the leader of the Conservative Party, would only minimally reduce the energy bill. Without tackling the wholesale price of electricity, which is the main cause of the surge in bills, removing green levies also prevents the UK’s ability to invest in renewable energy and enhance energy security in the country.

Read full article here.

Bright Blue's latest report featured in The Big Issue

Bright Blue’s report, In Deep Water? has featured in an article by the Big Issue.

The article discusses the that deprived areas are weighted more heavily in flood funding allocations – but in 2021, the Public Accounts Committee discovered that the proportion of funding going to these areas has declined since 2014. The article states that “In a recent report from think tank Bright Blue, the author noted with concern that this decline presents an “obvious concern” for the government’s much-vaunted levelling up agenda.”

You can read the full report here and the full article here.