HOW TO MISLEAD YOURSELF AND CONFUSE OTHERS

According to Nigel Lawson, one time Chancellor of the Exchequer under Margaret Thatcher and now a leading climate change sceptic, there has been no global warming at all so far this century.

According to the Met Office and the World Meteorological Organisation, the first decade of the 21st century has been the hottest on record.

So - who's telling the truth? Those organisations with 160 years of detailed records at their fingertips? Or the father of a TV cook?

Going back just a few years, climate change was pretty well the preserve of scientists. More recently, as climatologists have grown more and more worried about the effects of carbon emissions and the other stupid things humanity has been doing to its home, the issue has moved into the political sphere.

Which means that there are people who just don't want to believe the evidence, whose cosy (if rather simplistic) economic theories have no place for man-made climate change and the kind of response needed from governments and individuals around the world, and who would rather pretend that everything is just hunky-dory (as long as they're still making money).

And then there are those who are still using their eyes and ears - not to mention their brains.

It's uncomfortably similar to the windfarm debate. You can accept the science, or you can make grand, sweeping, unsubstantiated statements.

To put it another way, you can acknowledge that modern windfarms are graceful, quiet and efficient. Or you can make up and spread a lot of lies about them. You can take the sensible route, or you can take the VVASP route.

Whether it's man-made climate change in general or the proposed Lenchwick Windfarm in particular, there is a wholly specious debate going on, as those with a vested interest in opposing vital, necessary steps spout endless rubbish while others recognise that we share responsibility for the future of our nation and the planet.

What cannot be denied is that there is a global scientific consensus that climate change is happening, that it is fuelled by reckless human behaviour, and that if urgent measures are not taken very soon the outcome could be catastrophic. And there is also a small but noisy lobby, largely funded by fossil fuel interests, which is trying to claim that none of this is happening.

The Conservative Party is all at sea over this. As Peter Luff MP has amply demonstrated, their worship of self-interest prevents them from grappling with the communal nature of the problems we face and the solutions we need to adopt. It should come as no surprise that a former Tory Chancellor is now pushing the theory that there has been no warming at all in the past decade, while the experts produce evidence to the contrary.

Now, freedom of speech is precious. But when certain people and parties abuse such freedom in order to spread lies (about the climate, about windfarms) then they are risking our futures and deliberately setting out to confuse the electorate.

When you consider what's at stake - rising global temperatures, changing weather patterns, hundreds of thousands already dying because of climate change and the potential devastation to come - you really have to wonder why some people are trying so desperately to deny it all.

Maybe The Times's Eureka magazine (Issue 3: December 2009) put its finger on the problem. Apparently, a lot of it has to do with herd instinct.

If your neighbours are doing nothing to help the situation, then you'll be less inclined to do your bit.

Or, as we've seen in the Lenchwick area recently, if a few noisy, self-obsessed individuals are prepared to tell loud lies about windfarms, their neighbours are quite likely to join in.

So it behoves us all to take a more intelligent, more reasonable and - if necessary - more individual stand against the deniers and against the nimbies. All it takes is for people to wake up, examine the evidence for themselves, and refuse to be dragged down by their more arrogant and aggressive neighbours.

Then, at long last, common sense can return to the Lenchwick area - when the confusion caused by nimby lies is finally dispelled. Roll on that beautiful day.