Nigel Lawson

Nigel Lawson was Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1983 to 1989. He was raised to the peerage as Baron Lawson of Blaby in 1992.

Climate change sceptic

Although he has no scientific credentials, Lord Lawson is probably the most high-profile and prolific climate sceptic in the Tory Party. His son, Dominic Lawson, who is also a climate sceptic, is married to Rosa Monckton, the sister of the infamous climate denier and sceptic Christopher Monckton.

In 2009 Lawson set up the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF). The GWPF claims that its main purpose is ― to bring reason, integrity and balance to a debate that has become seriously unbalanced, irrationally alarmist, and all too often depressingly intolerant. Yet it relentlessly claims that climate change will not have too serious effects. The group‘s claim to be sceptical about climate policy and not about climate change itself appears a strategic choice, given that the GPWF oozes climate change denialism.

The Foundation, which secured £500,000 in funding in 2010, does not disclose its funding sources. In its annual report Lawson gave this justification:

There has been criticism in some parts of the media and elsewhere that we do not disclose the identity of our donors. In this we are not alone. Few think tanks do. Unlike most other charities, think tanks tend to operate in controversial areas, indeed, that is part of their raison d’être. It is understandable that donors do not wish to be publicly engaged in controversy. This is particularly true of GWPF, where the soil we till is highly controversial, and anyone who puts their head above the parapet has to be prepared to endure a degree of public vilification. For that reason we offer all our donors the protection of anonymity.

In order to reassure those who might otherwise doubt our complete independence, our Protocol for the Acceptance of Gifts lays down that we do not accept donations from the energy industry or from anyone with a significant interest in the energy industry.

Whilst there is no way of independently verifying this information, Lawson does have links to some of the world’s largest energy companies. He is chairman of the Central Europe Trust, whose clients include BP Amoco, Shell, Texaco and Total.

Affiliations

• Global Warming Policy Foundation Chairman, Board of Trustees
• Standpoint magazine, advisory council
• Central Europe Trust Company Ltd - Chairman 1990-present. CET's clients include BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Texaco
• Oxford Investment Partners (OXIP) - Chairman since 2006
• British Institute of Energy Economics - President 1995-2003
• Barclays Bank - 1990-1998
• Nuffield College, Oxford - Fellow 1972-73

Publications

Nigel Lawson, “An Appeal” to Reason: a cool look at global warming (2008)

External resources

• Spinwatch, Beware Sceptics Bringing “Balance” to the Climate Debate