I REFER to Business Editor Andy Richardson’s article in which he states that “David Cameron was warned five years ago that energy taxes would risk thousands of jobs across this region” (D&S Times, Oct 30).

I feel that this attempt to blame David Cameron for the contribution that energy saving taxes have had on the closure of the SSI plant at Redcar is, at best, disingenuous.

Tony Blair and the Labour Party were in government when the “save the planet” green taxes and national limits on carbon emissions were set and agreed EU-wide. Only the most stupid of politicians could not see that the EU, in setting unilateral limits, meant that EU highenergy-using businesses would no longer be operating on a level playing field in comparison to the rest of the world.

Further, any keen EU watcher knew that certain member states would ignore EU-wide agreements when it came safeguarding their own industries. The Italian government unilaterally assists its steel industry and Volkswagen has illegally attempted to protect the German car industry from the effects of green taxes by fitting software which falsifies emission test results.

If you believe that the use of hydrocarbon fuel is causing global warming and that Tony Blair’s legacy of green taxes will save the planet then think back to his illegal, and ill planned, second invasion of Iraq. This resulted in a vast number of oil wells being set on fire and burning for months on end and the release of more hydrocarbon pollution than will be released by all EU industries in my lifetime.

I trust that when eventually Tony Blair is indicted for war crimes, the court in The Hague will take into consideration his crime against humanity in causing the greatest human contribution to global warming since time began.

The closure of the SSI plant at Redcar is a part of Tony Blair’s legacy. David Cameron only attempted to meet the statutory emission levels that had been agreed by Tony Blair with the EU.

Alastair PG Welsh, Aycliffe Village