Did someone mention energy shortages ?

Max Hastings
Guradian 30/11/06
Corruption, violence and vice have triumphed in Putin's Russia

" ...... we must confront a defiant new Russia, fortified by possession of a substantial part of the world's oil and gas reserves in an era when energy competition will be critical."

Tony Blair
Meeting Magazine Editors at No 10 27 June 2006

"........ there is a simple stark fact that I would just like to put in front of people, which is we are going to go over the next 15 or 20 years to a situation where: one, the 20% that we get of our electricity from nuclear is going to decline to virtually zero; and two, where we are going to go from being 80 or 90% self-sufficient in oil and gas, to 80 or 90% importing it. And I think what that means is if we want to safeguard our energy supply ..."

That's one point made (apart from the fact that since TB spoke we are running with UK nuclear power at approx 65% of capacity due to engineering failures) .. for a well informed discussion on the death of Mr L the comments, which are many and varied, on the Max Hastings article are well worth reading.