Energy secretary Ed Davey claimed the green business interests of energy watchdog chief John Gummer were not conflict of interest Energy Secretary Ed Davey has admitted he knew former Tory Minister John Selwyn Gummer had green business interests when he chose him to head the powerful government watchdog that sets targets for renewable energy and greenhouse gas emissions. But he insisted they did not amount to a conflict of interest – on the grounds they only concerned ‘infrastructure’, not renewable power generation. Last night critics dismissed this view as ‘absurd’. The Mail on Sunday revealed earlier this year that Mr Gummer, now Lord Deben, is chairman of both Veolia Water UK, which connects windfarms to the National Grid, and the Climate Change Committee.
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John Selwyn Gummer is chairman of a firm which connects wind farms
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But he also leads a committee in charge of setting green energy targets
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Now Energy Secretary admits he knew - but insists there was no problem
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Labour climate sceptic Graham Stringer said that claim is 'patently absurd'
Labour MP Graham Stringer, a prominent climate sceptic, was scathing about Mr @placeholder’s role: ‘The whole of our energy policy has been distorted by green lobbyists.