A Spectre Is Haunting Europe

Enduring a record cold wave, facing cutbacks in natural gas supplies from Russia (wherre the temperature hit a record minus 30C, and with North Sea production in decline, Europe faces the possibility ofan acute, civilisation-changing energy crisis.

Britain is down to 11 days reserves of gas and facing business shutdowns if that disappears.

Author Jeremy Leggett says that part of him looks at the potential crisis and thinks "Bring it on." Such a crisis might stir the British government into doing something serious about getting off of hydrocarbons. But then he thinks about all the elderly who would die from the cold and he just feels sad. And angry at the government that talks a good game but does very little.