Prince of Wales hits out at climate change deniers... labelling them the 'headless chicken brigade' Prince Charles spoke out over 'sheer intimidation' of anti-climate change groups Said they turn scientific wisdom on its head to suit their own purposes Was speaking at an event for young entrepreneurs at Buckingham Palace Climate change deniers are headless chickens, Prince Charles has claimed. In an inflammatory speech, the heir to the throne spoke out against 'the barrage of sheer intimidation' from what he described as powerful interest groups. Addressing young environmental entrepreneurs at Buckingham Palace, he said sceptics were turning accepted scientific wisdom on its head. He said: 'It is baffling that in our modern world we have such blind trust in science and technology that we all accept what science tells us about everything -- until, that is, it comes to climate science. All of a sudden, and with a barrage of sheer intimidation, we are told by powerful groups of deniers that the scientists are wrong and we must abandon all our faith in so much overwhelming scientific evidence. 'So, thank goodness for our young entrepreneurs here, who have the far-sightedness and confidence in what they know is happening to ignore the headless chicken brigade and do something practical to help.' Charles was announcing the winner of a sustainability prize designed to inspire young people to tackle environmental, social and health issues. He told his guests on Thursday: 'As you may possibly have noticed from time to time, I have tended to make a habit of sticking my head above the parapet and generally getting it shot off for pointing out what has always been blindingly obvious to me. 'Perhaps it has been too uncomfortable for those with vested interests to acknowledge, but we have spent the best part of the past century enthusiastically testing the world to utter destruction; not looking closely enough at the long-term impact our actions will have.' Charles has long led the public charge against global warming -- despite repeated warnings about his 'meddling' in contentious global issues. His 'headless chickens' jibe ranks among his strongest comments yet. Benny Peiser, of the climate-sceptic Global Warming Policy Foundation, described the attack as aggressive and contentious. 'This is not unusual or surprising as he has made these claims many times over the years. But the irony is that in doing so he, Charles, is the mirror image of the very climate change deniers he attacks,' he said. 'It is not about being a climate change denier, as he says. It's just that people are becoming more sceptical about the extent of climate change. 'He talks about vested interests but he should be very careful his words don't backfire on him. The Crown Estate, for example, is making huge profits from the very offshore wind-farms that have angered so many of his future subjects. 'And for many people the issue of rising energy bills now is more important than what may or may not happen 100 years down the line. I fear he is ill advised to make such aggressive and contentious speeches. 'One of the reasons the Queen and the Royal Family are so loved is that they steer clear of such issues. His aggressive words indicate a certain insecurity and intransigence that will not go down well with the public.' Last autumn UN scientists said they were '95 per cent' certain that climate change is man-made -- but could still not explain why the world has barely got hotter in the last 15 years. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found that global warming was in 'hiatus', rising by just 0.05C per decade since 1998, down from 0.12C. But it also concluded that sea levels were rising along with carbon dioxide levels.

• published: 01 Feb 2014
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