For Stelios, Denial Isn't Just A River In Egypt

Stelios Haji-Ioannou, founder of Easyjet, is interviewed in the Guardian today. He doesn't seem to have a care in the world about rising emissions from aviation:

Q: Could it be that in another couple of years, taking short-haul flights could be as socially unacceptable as drink driving?
Stelios: No, I think that's unlikely.

Q: How will people travel in 10 years' time?
Stelios: More or less in the same way they travel now.

Stelios also insists that for "90% plus of our routes, there is no railway alternative."

Out of all the flights from Luton on the Easyjet website, I'll admit that that Luton to Belfast, Istanbul, Krakow, Riga and Warsaw are far voyages by train. Everything else is a train to Brussels or Paris, and then a night train where you save hotel costs for the night and wake up refreshed. So, where is the 90% of his network that he's talking about?

If emissions continue to rise in the aviation sector, the cuts needed in the remainder of the economy will be even more drastic.

Speaking of denial, Tony Blair is very good at the rhetoric of the need to do something about climate change. The problem is that when it comes to a pre-Budget report, it's timid. When it comes to codes for encouraging sustainble planning initiatives, it's voluntary. And, when it comes to rethinking the Aviation White Paper in light of the Stern Report, he just plain chickens out.