That's Owen Paterson, who recently left his post as British secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs. He was not a big favorite of the green lobby, because he never bought into their hysteria (which made many of them very rich). Today's quote is from a piece he wrote in The Telegraph last month (reprinted today in the Wall Street Journal). It could be said he left his post 'not with a whimper, but a bang.'
Here's the quote:
It has been a pleasure to take on the challenges of the rural economy and environment. However, I leave the post with great misgivings about the power and irresponsibility of - to coin a phrase - the Green Blob.
By this I mean the mutually supportive network of environmental pressure groups, renewable energy companies and some public officials who keep each other well supplied with lavish funds, scare stories and green tape. This tangled triangle of unelected busybodies claims to have the interests of the planet and the countryside at heart, but it is increasingly clear that it is focusing on the wrong issues and doing real harm while profiting handsomely.Paterson's relationship with the green lobby was never cordial as can be surmised by this addendum to his above remarks:
I soon realized that the greens and their industrial and bureaucratic allies are used to getting things their own way. I received more death threats in a few months at [the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] than I ever did as secretary of state for Northern Ireland.
