Richard Tice has doubled down on his remarks about climate change, declaring the “eco zealots have gone absolutely tonto” as a result.
Speaking to GB News, the Deputy Leader of Reform UK defended his comments after urging Britons to “celebrate” and “enjoy” the recent heatwaves.
Speaking at a Reform press conference on Monday, Mr Tice said: “Of course climate change is real, but where is the evidence that net zero is going to stop it? There isn’t any.
“I think when it’s a bit warm, let’s enjoy it, and if it means that English wine and sparkling wine gets better and better, fantastic.
“That means we can take on the French, fantastic. Let’s celebrate some of these things rather than just be sort of doom and gloom about it.”
Defending his remarks, Mr Tice told GB News that we should “actually celebrate things that are going well in the UK”.
He said: “The eco zealots have gone absolutely tonto at me. I’m the front page splash of the Daily Mirror, apparently I’m a wine buffoon.
“I do think that we should actually celebrate things that are going well in the UK, and if we’ve got an opportunity for a huge new growth industry, English wine, it’s delicious, then why not?”
Poking fun at the French, Mr Tice joked that an opportunity to challenge them should be encouraged.
He quipped: “If there’s an opportunity to challenge the French and something that they’re really good at, in the same way we’ve challenged them in English cheese making, bring it on, let’s celebrate it.
“And if it’s a bit warm, don’t be doom and gloom about it, let’s enjoy it. There’s enough challenges in life with all the other things that your good listeners and viewers and you talk about, that I just think is a reasonable approach to take.”
Challenging the Reform deputy, host Emily Carver cited remarks from Greenpeace who said Mr Tice’s comments “trivialised the experience of people affected by heat and wildfires”.
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Mr Tice responded: “It didn’t trivialise anything, and let’s just remember, of course, fires and things like that are extremely upsetting and damaging, but I would just remind people, as I did in the press conference, this is a similar summer to 1976, half a century ago.
“I’m old enough, like some of your good viewers and listeners, to remember that, and there wasn’t outrage and panic back then. That was half a century ago.”
He made clear: “And I just think that we would be much better to adapt to climate change, which is real than to think that you can stop it. And I would also say the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change itself said that even if you get to net zero tomorrow, it’ll only make a difference to rising sea levels in somewhere between 200 and 1000 years.
“The only reassuring thing about that was they said it was with high confidence. Seriously, I just think actually it would be a much more cost-effective way to adapt to it.
“When people were worried about London potentially at risk of flooding, we built the Thames Barrier some 40 to 50 years ago. There are other things like that that would be much more cost-effective as we adapt to a changing climate.”
Pressed by host Mark White on what the “advantages” of a UK heatwave are, Mr Tice stressed that amid the cost of living crisis, Britons can choose to go on holiday within the UK rather than travelling abroad.
He concluded: “You don’t need to go on holiday in France, you can go on holiday in Skegness where the ice cream is sensationally good value at £2.50 for a large 99 flake.
“I do think we can try and smile amongst all the challenges we have, and in all seriousness, given the cost of going on holiday, the extra passenger taxes, the cost of dropping off at airports, lots of people are looking at tight budgets and saying, well, actually, there’s some wonderful places to go on holiday in the UK. That’s an upside.
“Great for British jobs, great for British growth, and why not enjoy a bottle of English wine?”
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