The lack of real progress at the Durban climate change conference in 2011—postponing effective action until at least 2020—has many causes, one of which is the failure to address trade issues and, in particular, carbon leakage. This paper advances two arguments. First, it argues that the...

The paper provides a critique of the Labour government's attempts to make Britain more competitive by reforming regulation and competition policy. It is argued that the Utilities Act (2000) has not reduced the cost of capital, but rather the discretionary powers of the regulators have been...

Economic crises have historically set the stage for the reconfiguration of the economic borders of the state. Current concerns focus on debt and associated intergenerational issues, such as pensions, infrastructure, and the environment. The sustainable state is designed to put in place a...

Energy policy has frequently been based upon assumptions about future oil prices. At the end of the 1970s it was assumed oil prices would continue to rise. Now a similar assumption pervades policy design. This article critiques the peak oil hypotheses which lie behind these forecasts and policy...

The state of British infrastructure is the source of almost continuous study and criticism. There is now a host of new demands in water, energy, transport and communications which require a step change in investment. The Coalition government has made a series of reforms—to planning, finance,...

In 1990, the Conservative Government published a White Paper on the environment, This Common Inheritance (HMSO, 1990). It summarised the achievements of the past, and advanced the concept of integrated pollution control (IPC). In place of the separate regulation of air, land and water pollution,...