Greeny News

financially support the organization that regularly challenges the science and the cost of the fight against climate change

Michael Hintze, a major Conservative Party donor who runs the £ 5,000,000,000 hedge fund CQS, has become a funder of think tank skeptical of climate change founded by former Chancellor Lord Nigel Lawson.

Global Warming Policy Foundation, launched by Lawson in 2009, regularly casts doubt on the science and the cost of the fight against climate change in the media and called on climate scientists to show greater transparency, but refused to disclose details of its donors. Leading NASA climatologist James Hansen calls "a link in a manipulation of public opinion turned [with respect to climate change]."

Monday, Downing Street was forced to reveal that Hintze was a major donor curators were invited to dine privately with David Cameron in a "thank you" dinner after the general elections in 2010. The revelation that Hintze, who also donated 1.5 million pounds to the Conservative Party, is connected with climate change skepticism is an embarrassment to David Cameron, who pledged to lead the "greenest government ever".

The Guardian has seen correspondence from Hintze in which it appears to indicate that financially supports the organization of teaching. Last October, Hintze has emerged as a key figure in the lobbying scandal that forced the resignation of Defense Secretary Liam Fox, after it was revealed by the Guardian that Hintze had given free office space Werrity Adam Fox controversy associated Fox and Werrity flew his private plane. Former advisor to the charity Hintze, Oliver Hylton, later lost his job to CQS after it was revealed he was the only administrator Pargav Ltd, a company that paid for the travel world Werrity and makes a living donor of the Conservative Party.

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GWPF Hintze was evident in an email sent in September, according to an approach of a climate change project for funding. He refused the request in writing that he was "fully committed right now. In addition, we support the initiative of Nigel Lawson. "Both Hintze and CSC declined to comment on the e-mail.

There have been repeated calls for GWPF, who claims to be "of all parties and no party" to reveal the identity of their donors, but Lawson refused, saying it offers to all the donor anonymity protection, and not the risk of exposing to public criticism. He added that the charity does not accept donations from anyone who has a "significant" interest in the sector energy.

A long-term freedom of information request by the investigative journalist Brendon Montague, who was supported by Hansen, to force the Charity Commission to disclose the identity of the reflection group donors of seeds was rejected by a judge of the Court of Human information. The judge said, however, she found "surprising" that the GWPF claims to have a significant influence on politicians when it is registered as an educational organization. According to the Charity Commission, Charities teaching can not "exist in a political purpose." This, he said, was a matter of the Charity Commission to investigate, not the court.

, John Prescott, former Deputy Prime Minister, who called Lawson to disclose their donors, said: "Mr. Lawson must confess, not only for this gift, but also in any other gift came from .. The public interest requires greater transparency to where the money came from their hostile school climate change have asked in the alley, I asked in Parliament and I have to ask again: are clean Lord Lawson. "

Hintze, whose personal fortune is estimated by Forbes magazine at $ 1.4 billion (£ 880m) has been hailed in philanthropic circles for their donation of several million pounds to projects Art and museums, including major gifts to the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, £ 2 million for the National Gallery and money to help restore the frescoes in the chapel of the Vatican Paulina Michelangelo.