There's only one way to fight the climate greenlash: appeal to the naysayers' self-interest

For a decade, green activists in Britain have been congratulating themselves on their luck.

- Martha Gill

Unlike in many countries in Europe, where motorists, farmers and rightwing groups have been driving anti-climate action, the UK has long enjoyed a comfortable political consensus on the subject. But conditions for a greenlash are assembling.

Most Britons still say they support climate efforts, but the price of decarbonising may at last be about to hit our wallets. Meanwhile, the Conservative party has come a long way since it sported a little green oak tree as its logo. Last month, Kemi Badenoch declared a full culture war against net zero, which she said couldn't be achieved "without a serious drop in our living standards or by bankrupting us".

The UK is joining a global trend. Populist parties in Europe scored big victories last year, politicians opposed to climate action are gaining ground in Canada and Australia, and, most importantly, America has withdrawn from the Paris agreement. As international agreements break down, reasons to be selfish multiply. Why should other countries strain to preserve the planet as America steams ahead?