A former Cabinet Minister faces investigation over his business interests after The Mail on Sunday revealed that he stood to benefit from the advice he gives to the Government on climate change.
John Selwyn Gummer, an Environment Secretary under Margaret Thatcher, is chairman of the advisory Committee on Climate Change (CCC), which advises Ministers about reducing greenhouse gas emissions and replacing fossil fuel with ‘renewable’ energy.
But Lord Deben, as Mr Gummer is now, chairs a £500 million company called Veolia Water UK, which also works in the energy sector. He told MPs it did no energy-related business and dealt only with water.
If it had ‘even a remote connection’ with the environment or climate change, he promised, he would step down.
In fact, Veolia boasts on its website of supplying ‘large electrical grid connections for renewable energy producers’, and illustrates this with a large photograph of wind farms.
Now Tim Yeo, chairman of the separate Commons Climate Change Select Committee, has written to Energy Secretary Ed Davey, warning any ‘lack of transparency’ could damage the Government’s work on climate change.
Lord Deben last night insisted there was no conflict of interest.
Pictured is a case study page from Veolia’s website. Lord Deben chairs the £500million company and said it did not energy-related business
Mail on Sunday, 27 January 2013