Melanie McDonagh Melanie McDonagh

Is the Guardian practising what it preaches on climate change?

The Guardian has an advertisement today from Sainsbury’s. Nothing wrong with that; respectable paper, respectable retailer. It’s the nature of the ad that’s interesting: a big bubble saying Save 10p per litre of fuel, surmounted by a picture of a petrol pump nozzle. You can see were the problem lies, can’t you?

This is the paper that’s sympathetic to Extinction Rebellion, to Greta Thunberg, to the anti-fossil fuel activists who campaign against the British Museum accepting funding from BP, now giving space to a company flogging petroleum cheap, thereby stimulating consumption.

Indeed, on its front page, the Guardian gives coverage to the report from the Committee on Climate Change which is described as “a plan that would mean the end of petrol and diesel cars”. Which will also mean, presumably, the end of promoting cheap fossil fuels in advertisements in national papers.

Money makes hypocrites of the best of us.

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