Get free updates on US politics and policy delivered straight to your inbox with our myFT Daily Digest email. Welcome to Edinburgh, where the weather is cooler but thunderstorms are on the horizon. As I take over from Stephen after my own holiday, I can’t help but think about the pressing issues in Spain’s recent election highlighted in Simon Kuper’s insightful column in the FT Magazine.
Today, Inside Politics is edited by Leah Quinn. Follow Lukanyo @LukanyoMnyanda and Stephen @stephenkb on Twitter, and send any gossip, thoughts, and feedback to [email protected].
Let’s dive into some interesting topics that emerged while I was away. Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg made a decision to pull out of the Edinburgh International Book Festival due to its sponsorship by Edinburgh-based fund manager Baillie Gifford. Thunberg accused them of greenwashing and investing heavily in fossil fuels. While this development is unfortunate for the book festival, it raises broader questions about the effectiveness of climate activism.
Personally, I’ve always supported activists raising awareness, even if it disrupts events. Growing up in South Africa, I became more aware of the political situation when activists from New Zealand disrupted a rugby game that I had eagerly woken up to watch. This experience shaped my perspective and made me empathize with activists.
Baillie Gifford defended itself against Thunberg’s claims, highlighting that only a small percentage of their clients’ investments are allocated to fossil fuels, while a significant portion is invested in clean energy companies. Former FT colleague Merryn Somerset Webb also came to their defense, pointing out the company’s strong focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues. This reminded me of a conversation I had with an industry expert at a conference, who argued that boycotting oil companies entirely would not make sense since fossil fuels will continue to be part of our economies for the foreseeable future. Instead, he advocated for rewarding companies supporting the transition to clean energy and penalizing those lagging behind.
I wonder if Thunberg’s approach would have been more productive if she engaged with companies like Baillie Gifford and pushed them to do more, rather than outright boycotting them. Would her presence at the book festival have inspired young activists more than her absence?
In another political development, Rishi Sunak visited Scotland and expressed his intent to maximize the extraction of oil and gas reserves in the North Sea. This statement has sparked debates about energy security requirements and the economic and moral viability of such a move. The issue of energy is likely to be a key battleground in next year’s general election, but the messaging needs to be more nuanced than the simplistic slogan from the 1970s: “It’s Scotland’s oil.”
Shifting gears to the Edinburgh festivals, August is an exciting time in the city. Personally, I haven’t taken full advantage of the festivals in the past due to the overwhelming choices available. However, I have had the pleasure of seeing incredible shows from South African artists like Trevor Noah, Loyiso Gola, Yael Farber, and Lara Foot. Foot is back this year with her adaptation of JM Coetzee’s Life and Times of Michael K, which promises to be a compelling production incorporating puppetry. I also have a personal connection to the play, as one of the actors, Andrew Buckland, was a lecturer at my university and his son was a close friend.
Next week, I’ll be attending one of Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf’s festival appearances. He’ll be joined by Geoff Aberdein, a former senior aide to Alex Salmond, who now leads the pro-independence party, Alba. It will be an interesting conversation considering Salmond’s ongoing presence in the media and Nicola Sturgeon’s upcoming memoir, which promises to be deeply personal and revealing. It remains to be seen whether she will address her recent arrest as part of a police investigation into the SNP’s finances.
Now, let’s move on to some of today’s top stories. Rishi Sunak is considering following President Joe Biden’s lead in restricting outbound investment into the Chinese tech sector. In the UK, house sales are set to decline as high mortgage rates deter buyers, while tenants engage in bidding wars over the limited number of available rental properties. Additionally, Rishi Sunak’s pledge to reduce waiting lists for routine hospital treatment in England is under threat as NHS strikes over pay push the healthcare system to a “tipping point.”
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