I welcome Richard Drax’s support for research and development to reduce greenhouse gases and his acceptance that fossil fuels will end some day.

The key issue is the timescale.

What he calls “Project Fear” is actually “Project Truth” - scientific truth.

The overwhelming consensus of climate scientists is that we must prevent the world warming by more than 1.5 degrees C and halve greenhouse gas emissions within a decade.

We have seen world-wide recent examples of extreme weather - droughts, wildfires, floods and storms - with global warming of 1.1 degrees. Even if we contain global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees, the extreme weather world wide will be so much worse than anything we have yet seen.

I share Mr Drax’s concern for the impact on the poor, but let us remember that the poor of the developing nations already suffer the worst impacts of climate change, when they have done least to cause it.

I agree that what replaces fossil fuels must work and be affordable.

Here wind and solar have proved themselves in the UK, by providing 40% of our electricity last year.

Both are now cheaper than nuclear power and the National Grid has successfully integrated their intermittent supply of electricity into the grid.

I hope for a successful outcome from COP26 and look forward to building on this in the future.

JOHN TOMBLIN

Weymouth