COP commences with chaos

‘COP26: no time for delay’ scream the signs at Euston station. But for hundreds of desperate delegates yesterday it proved to be a cruel irony after dozens of rail services to Glasgow were cancelled thanks to a fallen tree and severe weather sparked rail chaos. Members of HM lobby took to their WhatsApp group to complain about the chaos, with Britain’s hacks forced to engage in an undignified game of Planes, Trains and Automobiles to race across the country to reach the UN eco-jamboree.

The i paper‘s Paul Waugh had his Glasgow-bound train turned back at Milton Keynes while Red Lion regular Eleanor Langford was one of many forced to board domestic flights, as Mr S predicted on Saturday. Others hired cars from Watford for the seven hour drive while Sky’s Samantha Washington was quoted for £870 for a taxi for the 42 miles from Edinburgh to Glasgow. Veteran broadcaster Jon Snow meanwhile blamed the collapse of branches on climate change – something, presumably, he has never seen before in his 74 windy autumns on this earth.