MAYBE it's the time of year but here at Faversham Towers we seem to have spent most of the month wading through reports, surveys and studies, as the news pages of this issue will confirm.
The most worrying report, in many ways, was that produced by the Association for the Conservation of Energy (ACE) into the implications that an increasing domestic demand for air conditioning could have on CO2 emissions.

The report is wide ranging but is, not surprisingly, anti-air-conditioning. I will leave it to others to question the various scenarios it puts forward but one worrying aspect is the suggestion that businesses should be encouraged to reduce the amount of air conditioning in commercial premises in order, as it says, “to prevent possible links between household and work expectations”.

I would suggest that this is a dangerous assertion which echoes redundant pre-Victorian attitudes that certain “luxuries” were considered “too good for the working class”. Everyone has a right to food, drink and a roof over their heads. In this day and age you could also argue that people have a right to be able to keep warm and dry and, by the same token, to keep cool.

To suggest that somehow subterfuge should be used “in order to lower office workers desire for air conditioning at home” is, frankly, immoral.

However, precedents have already been set in this respect and now it appears that any socially devisive edict appears acceptable if it is wearing the cloak of environmentalism.

Take the case of cars. Too many cars on the road? Then make it more expensive through taxes and road tolls. Eventual result: only the rich will be able to afford to drive. The same applies with pollution fears due to cheap air travel. Increase the prices they say. Result: it’s the less fortunate in society who are denied the opportunity to broaden their horizons.

Of course, this is all so much easier than doing the one thing that would really make a difference – and ACE does touch on this in its report – and that is to properly educate the public. As I mentioned in my comment a couple of months back people’s ability to save energy is clouded by misinformation, old wives’ tales and general ignorance. In less enlightened times it was essential to keep the proletariat ill-educated, poor and disadvantaged. I thought we’d moved on from there.

Ironically, ACE, as its name suggests, was specifically set up to raise our awareness of energy conservation. I’ll let you decide how good a job it is doing.

Neil Everitt

Editor