Time for Debate over Climate Change is Over - Sir Nicholas Stern

How is it that, in the face of overwhelming scientific evidence, there are still some who would deny the dangers of climate change? In an exclusive extract from his new book, Nicholas Stern argues that the time for debate on climate change is well and truly over.

The basic scientific conclusions on climate change are very robust and for good reason.

• The greenhouse effect is simple science: greenhouse gases trap heat, and humans are emitting ever more greenhouse gases.
  
• There will be oscillations, there will be uncertainties. But the logic of the greenhouse effect is rock-solid and the long-term trends associated with the effects of human emissions are clear in the data.
  
• The arguments from those who would deny the science look more and more like those who denied the association between HIV and Aids or smoking and cancer.
  
• Science and policy-making thrive on challenge and questioning; they are vital to the health of inquiry and democracy. But at some point it makes sense to move on to the challenge of policymaking, having accepted that the evidence is overwhelming.
  

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