Professor Paul Rogers claims Jeremy Corbyn is the politician most likely to address challenges of climate change and neo-liberalism

A leading academic has claimed that Jeremy Corbyn is the politician whose policies are most in tune with what will be needed over the coming decade to counter the disruption likely to be caused by climate change.

Addressing the annual conference of the National Justice and Peace Network in Swanwick, Derbyshire, Professor of Peace Studies at Bradford University Paul Rogers claimed that “the one person in tune with what is going to happen over the next five years is Jeremy Corbyn.”

Professor Rogers declared that there was something very wrong with a world economy where the mass of wealth is accruing to a smaller and smaller number of people. “The neo-liberal economic system is not delivering justice,” said the peace professor, who highlighted how this division of wealth was being exaserpated by some of the effects of climate change. “There is a neo-liberal economic system that finds it difficult to deal with the climate change,” said Professor Rogers, who believes that this failure results in world government using military power in an attempt to keep control of what is happening, rather than address the root causes.

Professor Rogers pointed out that the speed of destruction is getting worse with for example typhoon Hyan, which hit the Philippines last year, running at speeds of 160 mph for 10 minutes. Some 6,300 people died as a result of the typhoon with untold damage done to the country.  

The professor believes though that it is big shocks that often cause world governments to act. He quoted the example of how the London smog in 1952, killed 4,000 people in four days. “This effected the power elites and brought the clean air act forward a decade,” said Professor Rogers. Similarly the threat posed by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in the 1980s brought quick action from governments to halt the danger.

He claimed  that there are things going on, almost unnoticed to address the problems such as grid Photovoltaic panels being erected across sub suhara and Africa.

Professor Rogers believes the next 15 years will be crucial in moving strongly to address the threats posed by climate change to the peace and living environment. “The period between now and 2030 is crucial – we have to work to get the changes,” said Professor Rogers, who remains positive that this will be achieved. “We can have a peaceful, sustainable and just world in the 2070s if we make the right moves now up to 2045,” said Professor Rogers.