Leading article: The Osborne doctrine

What with all the excitement over Italian courtroom dramas, not enough attention was given to a radical statement by George Osborne at the Conservative party conference. It was one of the few important pronouncements made in Manchester this week. He declared: ‘Let’s at the very least resolve that we’re going to cut our carbon emissions no slower but also no faster than our fellow countries in Europe.’ There is no mistaking his meaning. And while it might not sound like much, it was a declaration of open defiance.

Under the Climate Change Act, as it is currently structured, the government is legally bound to cut Britain’s carbon emissions by 34 per cent by the end of this decade. The rest of the EU, on the other hand, has only committed to 20 per cent. So unless the rest of the EU rapidly exceeds its target — unlikely unless their economies move from downturn to collapse — George Osborne has resolved to challenge the status quo.