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James Murray

@james-bg.bsky.social
6.6K followers 1.3K following 5.7K posts

Editor-in-chief of BusinessGreen, writing for a couple of decades or so about the environment, the economy, green politics, and the Climate Theory of Everything

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by James Murray
Michael Liebreich @mliebreich.bsky.social · 1h
Timelapse of the big @pragmacharge.bsky.social hub we built in Valencia - Europe's biggest with 50 bays. Now operating along with a smaller hub in Felixstowe - 48 more hubs to go by 2030. #NoMoreDiesel #TimeToElectrify #ElectricFreight #EuropeRising #PragmaCharge
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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 2h
Oh boy:
ft.com
Healey set to delay difficult choices with ‘breathing space’ UK Budget
Chancellor expected to focus statement on targeted help for households and businesses rather than tax rises on the scale of recent budgets
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Philip Jacobson @philjaco.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
New 166-page report is first comprehensive review of impact of USAID’s closure on its nature-related initiatives (biodiversity conservation, climate adaptation, clean energy, ocean plastics etc) news.mongabay.com/2026/09/new-... by @shokes.bsky.social @mongabay.com
news.mongabay.com
New report reveals the environmental cost of USAID’s destruction
Nearly two years after U.S. President Trump’s decision to dismantle international development agency USAID removed nearly $1 billion from global conservation and environment funding, the agency’s abse...
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 21h
The EV market really is absolutely flying. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536682...
businessgreen.com
'Major achievement': Almost five new EVs sold in the UK every minute in September
UK car industry hails record electric vehicle sales in September, with almost 100,000 fully-electric vehicles registered
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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 22h
The ability to pour hundreds of millions of pounds into a loss-making TV channel, bent on wrenching British politics sharply to the right, is yet another of the ways in which extreme wealth is trying to remake UK democracy. It needs to be part of any serious conversation about political funding.
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michaelholder.bsky.social @michaelholder.bsky.social · 21h
Zack Polanski's #GreenPartyConference speech, 25 mins in: "When it comes to priorities, there's one that sits at the heart of all we do... the climate crisis has been taking lives and destroying livelihoods for years. But this summer, the destruction reached our shores like never before."
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 21h
This would be an interesting move ahead of energy bills climbing to £2,000 a year. The Warm Homes Plan (and CCS and hydrogen) are also meant to be political cover for Burnham's 'pragmatic' approach to more North Sea drilling.
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Will be intriguing to see if Chris Stark's departure does signal any shift in thinking in government on the clean power plans. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536683...
businessgreen.com
Chris Stark to step down as head of government's clean power mission
'Clean power tzar' to leave government in surprise move, sparking speculation over government's ambitious clean power goal
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Duncan Weldon @duncanweldon.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Lots of this about. Imagine if the guy talking up the need to repair the public finances hadn’t cut NICS. Still, at least it allowed them to win the 2024 election.
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Duncan Robinson @duncanrobinson.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
God imagine if Starmer had gone ahead with that income tax rise, providing money to knackered state, building fiscal credibility and lowering inflation. At least ducking it let him keep his job Hang on
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
It's very easy to ignore them, but it's notable how so many of the people within industries who are tasked with understanding supply chain risk and resilience are just very worried right now. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536592...
businessgreen.com
'There will be growing disruption': Food industry insiders raise alarm over supply chain resilience
Unnamed executives issue memo warning their companies are defaulting to 'quick fixes' to tackle climate impacts, while failing to invest sufficiently in building supply chain resilience
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John Hanger @jrfhanger.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Good morning with good news: EVs in Australia reach 2035 sales goal a decade early! Plug-in vehicles' share doubles to 25.8% in H1 2026 vs. 12.1% in H1 2025. Sales may be 29% for all of 2026. August EV sales were ~36%, with BEVs a record 24.1%. thedriven.io/2026/09/30/w... #energysky
thedriven.io
"We got there a decade early:" EV industry hails breakthrough year as "average Australians" turn to electric cars
EV lobby hails breakthrough year for electric cars, but warns the market could stagnate if the likes of Toyota convince the government to dilute vehicle emission rules.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 01/10/2026
Trump on global warming: "That didn't work out because the planet got cooler. In fact, you know the ice that was melting? It right now just set a record. It's the biggest ice cube that's ever been in the history of the world ... they're doing the scam with data centers, by the way."
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George Pearkes @peark.es · 01/10/2026
This is a good thread and for some reason it unlocked something that's been brewing in the back of my head for a while.
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Alex Andreou @sturdyalex.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
You know, children, there was a time, not so long ago, when serious journalists - even right wing propagandists cosplaying objectivity - would applaud an experienced, even-tempered Foreign Secretary, like Hague or Hammond, being a bit dry, rather than jumping on stuff as if they were Perez Hilton.
Tim Shipman
@ShippersUnbound
"Incident".
Wow
Ed Miliband
@Ed_Miliband
14h
Deeply concerned about the incident that occurred on the Flydubai flight to Israel and very relieved that the plane landed safely thanks to the actions of those on board.
All of my thoughts are with those injured in the attack and all those...
Rate proposed Community Notes
10:01 PM
Sep 30, 2026
49.7K Views
...
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Simon Evans @drsimevans.carbonbrief.org · 30/09/2026
NEW ANALYSIS: Record wind and solar save UK from gas imports worth £5.9bn during Hormuz crisis 🌤️ wind/solar generation up 14% in 2026 to date 🏭 gas down ~10% 🚢 >100 LNG cargoes avoided
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The Bear @bearlypolitics.co.uk · 01/10/2026
Bad news, everyone - Brexit has apparently caused the entire United Kingdom to detach from Europe and drift several thousand miles west. We are now slowly approaching Newfoundland. Can someone please let Eurostar now there might be some issues.
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This is not quite as bad as it looks, as lots of companies will still report on their environmental performance and climate risks, but it's still pretty bad. The very companies that most need to report will likely be the ones that don't. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536621...
businessgreen.com
'Comply or explain': FCA drops planned mandatory sustainability reporting for listed UK firms
Financial regulator confirms 'comply or explain' approach for Sustainability Reporting Standards rules that are set to come into force from next year
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Rachel Cunliffe @rmcunliffe.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
"The party has also said it would look closer at whether parents' earnings and savings should be factored into welfare payments for their children" So according to the Tories, it's wrong to means-test benefits for boomers... but totally fine to do so for their adult children children.
bbc.co.uk
Conservatives pledge 'tough love' benefit rules for under-25s
The party says it would bring in new work requirements for young people claiming Universal Credit.
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Latest blog is on Burnham's promise of 'pragmatism' in the North Sea, why it's a weaselly word that is providing cover for deeply unpragmatic actions, and why the climate movement needs to talk more about the climate crisis. www.businessgreen.com/blog-post/45...
businessgreen.com
What does true pragmatism look like in an age of climate crisis?
Andy Burnham has promised a 'pragmatic' approach to North Sea drilling, but who gets to decide what that word even means?
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Some encouraging progress on methane emissions from oil and gas majors. Now, about those production plans... www.businessgreen.com/news/4536614...
businessgreen.com
Oil and gas giants report upstream methane emissions are down 61 per cent in last decade
Oil and Gas Climate Initiative members claim to have hit collective carbon and methane targets for 2025, despite production increases
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Actual good news, as embedded concrete emissions fall. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536561...
businessgreen.com
Industry reveals embodied carbon of UK concrete fell five per cent last year
Latest Low Carbon Concrete Group Market Benchmark report shows emissions reductions have been achieved following revisions to industry standards to enable use of more low carbon materials
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Food industry executives now warning their own investors that we're sleepwalking towards a climate-induced food security disaster. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536592...
businessgreen.com
'There will be growing disruption': Food industry insiders raise alarm over supply chain resilience
Unnamed executives issue memo warning their companies are defaulting to 'quick fixes' to tackle climate impacts, while failing to invest sufficiently in building supply chain resilience
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Jon Owen @anotherjon.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Paddling (canoeing) across Windermere today, into the teeth of a pretty stiff Force 3 wind - lumpy, and just this side of whitecaps - I came across a swimming squirrel, looking very stressed. Not a planned swim, I'm guessing. It was 300m to either shore, so I'm not sure s/he was going to be okay.
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Andy Scollick @andyscollick.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Very depressing.
rte.ie
Swiss glaciers suffer 'catastrophic' melt in 2026
Switzerland's glaciers, which are disproportionately impacted by climate change, have lost nearly 20% of their mass in five years, experts have said, with 2026 registering the second-biggest melt on r...
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Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I share Ganesh's irritation with "Good Growth" but I find the rest of this rather facile, honestly. If your solution to the UK's sluggish growth is "Cut pensions, spend it on tax cuts" I do need you to articulate to me why we're not living through Jeremy Hunt's utopia. www.ft.com/content/3b92...
ft.com
At least Burnham doesn’t pretend to care about growth
Unlike his predecessors, Britain’s prime minister is a fairly honest stagnation-ist
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Rachel Cunliffe @rmcunliffe.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
This is your semi-regular reminder that pensioner poverty: a) is real b) is significantly less prevalent than working-age poverty and half the rate of child poverty, and c) is such that a pensioner is statistically more likely to live in a household worth over £1 million than to live in poverty
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Wolfgang Blau @wblau.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Don’t you wish the climate debate was nearly as passionate as the AI debate? www.instagram.com/reel/Dd6s503...
instagram.com
Ezra Klein on Instagram: "Can we leave A.I. safety to the existing laws and legal system, assuming criminal liability and reputational risk will keep companies from releasing anything unsafe? That’s t...
13K likes, 501 comments - ezraklein on September 30, 2026: "Can we leave A.I. safety to the existing laws and legal system, assuming criminal liability and reputational risk will keep companies from r...
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Charlie Warzel @cwarzel.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
There is a moment at the very very end of Abdul El-Sayed's podcast with Ezra Klein (book recommendation section) where he talks about the idea of "speaking truth to pain" and this will be staying with me for an extremely long time. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/25/o...
But there’s also something about truth to pain. We talk a lot about truth to power, but I think it’s actually a lot harder to speak truth to pain. I say that as someone who went to medical school, realizing that in a lot of our politics right now, we’ve got to get a lot better at speaking truth to pain if we’re going to get through some of these challenges that we have.

What does “truth to pain” mean?

It’s one thing to look power in the eye and say: You’re wrong about this. But there’s a way in which pain is very difficult to reason with. Because when somebody is in their pain, they’re in their trauma. They see that pain, and they may not see what’s causing it.

I remember just very explicitly being in a trauma ward with a gunshot wound patient and watching this big guy with his hand on his gunshot wound. All the folks are trying to pull his hand off his pain, that point of his gunshot wound, this clear vulnerability.

And this emergency room doctor had the presence of mind to be like: Everyone, stop. And she looks him in the eyes, and she’s like: I get that really hurts, and I’m so sorry that you’re here. You don’t want to be here. We don’t want you to be here. But if you don’t let us fix this, you could die. So I’m going to take your hand, and I’m going to move it off, OK? Because I need to get there so that you can live.

She was speaking truth to pain. He understands he’s at the hospital, he needs care, but he also doesn’t want anybody to touch the wound. Which is a natural thing. And I think it is a really great metaphor for how we think about a lot of these challenges we talked about today.
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Elle @elleisanisland.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
The magnificence of the mushroom
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I'm studying biotech and every time someone brings up mushrooms our current professeor will look either extremely excited or pained and go, "listen, mushrooms are neither plants nor animals nor something inbetween. We do not know what they are. Some are immortal. Some produce life-saving substances some are so closely related to humans that eating them may cause an allergic reaction against your own body. I cannot teach you about the mushrooms.
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shauna @goldengateblond.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
i thought about this old tweet tonight and how nothing has ever aged better
@Merman_Melville • Jan 24, 2019
Being a billionaire must be insane. You can buy new teeth, new skin. All your chairs cost 20,000 dollars and weigh 2,000 pounds. Your life is just a series of your own preferences. In terms of cognitive impairment it's probably like being kicked in the head by a horse every day
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Angela Eagle is not impressed with the climate plans from the Tories and Reform. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536553...
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Annie Leymarie @annieleymarie.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A 'positive tipping point' other cities should emulate. Once a certain threshold is reached, a beneficial transition becomes easier to extend!
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
The frozen food and cooling industry could slash emissions and energy costs without any compromise on food safety or quality and yet it doesn't because 'that's not the way we do things'. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536554...
businessgreen.com
Study: Freezing food at -15C could cut energy consumption seven per cent
Research published by Nomad Foods provides further evidence keeping frozen foods at slightly higher temperatures is safe and delivers significant emissions and energy savings
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ironeconomist.bsky.social @ironeconomist.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Someone wishes for the good old days and the monkeys paw has decided we should do: (1) a 1970s oil crisis (2) a 1990s tech cycle (3) a 2010s eurozone debt crisis All at once.
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John Hanger @jrfhanger.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Good morning with good news: Sales of EV trucks in China skyrocket 80% in H1 2026! BNEF says EV trucks will be 33% of truck sales in 2026. But Sinopec Research Institute says EV trucks will be ~50% of sales in 2026! EV truck exports more than double! www.bloomberg.com/news/feature... #energysky
bloomberg.com
China Has an 18-Wheel Answer to Soaring Global Diesel Prices
Around a third of trucks sold in China this year will run on electricity, furthering Beijing’s goal of bolstering energy security.
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Emily✨ @emilyoram.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Liquid Bluesky
National Trust• @nationaltrust.org.uk 
Nobody has ever regretted a scone after a long walk.

Except someone with ceoliac disease
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Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
God yeah, imagine a party captured by its most extreme wing.
Does anybody think it’d be a good idea for a government to be propped up by one of those parties who have single issue policies that really would be potentially very damaging to the UK itself and to our foreign relationships?
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WWF UK @wwf.org.uk · 30/09/2026
Some steps in the right direction in yesterday's speech, but if the PM wants to bring down household bills this will need to be combined with a transition to clean energy. 🔋⚡ We CAN protect the natural world, people, AND our energy security if we act now. 💚
theguardian.com
What is Burnham’s GB Grid plan and could it bring down energy bills?
Proposed government-backed network body welcomed by some in sector but others call it just another quango
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Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Shabana, did you know Indonesia is at a crossroads?
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Nicholas Beuret @nicholasbeuret.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
The ocean is not ok 👉 Half the world's oceans experienced heatwaves last year 👉 It became 17% more acidic between 1985 and 2025 👉 Salty areas are getting saltier 👉 Sea level rise increased from 3.8mm/yr to 4.2mm/yr
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Some thoughts on Burnham's speech, including signs of progress on clean energy and big imminent tests of his commitment to decarbonisation. Although, the biggest development is that we're no longer sleepwalking towards a climate denialist government. www.businessgreen.com/blog-post/45...
businessgreen.com
Change agent: Burnham's support for clean energy is welcome, but tough choices await
The Prime Minister is serious about climate action and has the political ability to sell his vision, but imminent decisions on North Sea drilling and electric vehicles could undermine his green ambitions
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
It's even worse than this, as they don't then do the self-styled 'pragmatism' right. The argument is you can do another wave of fossil fuel development - be it drilling or runways - and still reach net zero, but they won't put proper legal guardrails in place or invest properly in carbon removals.
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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
It’s a mark of the corruption of our whole way of thinking about the world that trying to meet a planetary emergency is routinely described as “ideological”, while continuing to accelerate it is presented as “pragmatic” and “economic”.
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Supremely bleak report on coal financing out this morning. Banks, including UK banks, are still pumping billions of pounds into coal projects that will almost certainly breach global climate goals. www.businessgreen.com/news/4536521...
businessgreen.com
'Fuelling the financial shocks of tomorrow': UK banks branded Europe's biggest backers of coal projects
UK banks provided $8.3bn in loans and underwriting to coal companies between 2022 and 2025, according to new data
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Dan Grey @dangrey.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
There's nothing "noble" or "ideological" about decarbonisation. It is a sensible, pragmatic approach to tackling the twin threats of climate change and the fragility of fossil fuel supply. #r4today
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Scott Wortley @scottwortley.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
10/10. No notes.
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Teresa Ribera @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu · 29/09/2026
Scaring heat, global warming is accelerating.🌎🔴 Always a pleasure to meet with Celeste Saulo, @wmo-global.bsky.social Secretary General. We had a valuable exchange on what observations and the latest science are telling us, and on the major challenges ahead.
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Ursula von der Leyen @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu · 29/09/2026
Our infrastructure must adapt to a changing climate. A more volatile world. And a Union that is growing larger. We need to build the transport system for the decades ahead. We need to build a true Transport Union ↓ link.europa.eu/dPtH3y
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General Boles @generalboles.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Bluesky reacts to Burnham speech
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