The bottom line is no one knows if global warming is caused by human activity. However we start reducing CO2 emissions now and it turns out that global warming is a cyclical blip on not caused by humans then what happens? Most of us may be slightly poorer and a lot of people will look very silly. On the otherhad if we do nothing and it turns out that we are to blame, we're screwed. I think I know what scenario I would prefer.

Hey, who are you gonna believe? A scientist... or Keisha Castle Hughes? I guess it all comes down to whose view is most fashionable...

Yippy for common sense. I wonder if the government can still justify their "climate change" tax. See: http://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/2675509/Climate-change-26pp-a-week

Great... now we'll have every right wing numb nuts writing about how stupid we are to think our destructive lifestyles are damaging the planet. One article, from hicksville australia will disprove everything we know about global warming... Believe it if you're stupid

Bravo! I agree and am glad to see something come out on the other side of the pond! For those skeptics who still think that this isn't a "man made concern", go to climatedepot.com and see if you still think so. Don't you think that if there was any truth to this at all that Al Gore and his cronies would park their personal SUVs and private jets? This whole thing is just a money maker,and they've succeeded in convincing almost the whole world that they have to add this, do this, stop this ... whatever ... while they line their pockets. Meanwhile, businesses are being made to conform or be shut down -- so, what do you think the impact is going to be on the economy? Lost jobs, more businesses folding, and Al Gore and Friends go on their merry way!

Steaming pile of horse manure that paper. Well known cranks, De Freitas,, Carter and McLean get to publish their nonsense now. Of course it will be thoroughly rubbished by the scientific community, but the dumb masses won't know any better.

Ah well, extermination is probably all for the best.

At last, some scientific common-sense!

No one has factored in what effect solar flares has on temperatures or if there is a correlation between cyclic solar activity and El Nino. Yes there is, and "no", nothing can be done about it, and "no", no ones going to give you a grant to investigate it because it's the sun you fools!

There could be any number of cosmic reasons why temperatures on the planet fluctuate, or that it is simply a perfectly natural manifestation of "the big thaw", duh!

Global warming IS NOT "man made", citizens must resist Green taxations, they are a fraud!

Green house gases are a consequence - NOT a cause - of global warming. The sun is the primary determinant of our weather at any given moment; sun spots, solar flares and solar winds are the main cause of many of our deadly weather systems. Carbon dioxide production increases when solar activity increases. However, oxygen levels also increase. The reason for the increase of CO2 and O2 directly relates to an increase of plant material capable of photosynthesis. Phytoplankton are a chlorophyll-based group of microscopic plants that are found in our oceans, seas and lakes. They contribute half of the CO2 and O2 gas emissions as a consequence of photosynthesis (O2 during the day) and respiration (CO2 at night). To reiterate: A warm climate will produce more plants. If there are more plants there will be an increase in gas levels (CO2 and O2). Now for the fun part. Is global warming REAL? Answer - Yes. Global warming is as real to us as the Little Ice Age was to Northern Europe. For 300 years starting from the 16th Century glaciers in the Swiss Alps advanced, The River Themes often froze over and snow storms in Portugal were much more frequent. Who knows for sure how long the global warming period will last and what the consequences will be? Is global warming a direct result of fossil fuel usage? Answer - No. Human beings are a very ego-centric species. As a result we have failed to recognise climate change as a natural event. Fact: the climate ALWAYS changes; The Little Ice Age, The Medieval Warm Period, The Holocene Maximum. We measure CO2 in tens of parts per million. That means CO2 makes up 0.05 percent of our atmosphere. Actually, the most significant green house gas - at 95% - is water vapour! Man generates CO2 in the single digit percentile compared to volcanoes, vegetation and animals. Animals and bacteria produce 160G tonnes of CO2 per year while humans produce 6.5G tonnes. The biggest source of CO2 is the oceans. Is there anything we can do about global warming? Answer - No. The IPCC (UN International Panel on Climate Change) would have us believe that the "Post-War Economic Boom" is significantly responsible for the current change in the Earth's climate. Yet CO2 levels were dropping between the 1940's to the 1970's. During the late 1970's to mid-1980's downturn in manufacturing and automotive usage, CO2 levels climbed significantly. The ego-bruising truth is that we do not generate a significant amount of green house gas. In conclusion: We do not have the technology or political will to stop global warming. It would be like stopping a speeding locomotive with a box of tissue paper. In any case, climate change is a wholly natural phenomenon and should NOT be interfered with. Who knows? The following Warm Period may actually be a good thing.

Surprise surprise .... I always did think it strange that the "science was settled".....it is undeniable that.. "Sheep farting heats up the planet".

The terminal morraine of the Tasman glacier reached Twizel about 16,000 years ago....overall it has been receeding ever since.....long before this politically driven "Human caused GLobal warming" thing.

Greenpeace have lost my vote for scaremongering...spouting such unscientific Mumbojumbo.

Lets all agree on how to measure the temperature of "the planet" before increasing the taxes !!!!

The global TAX bandits not going to be happy about this one. My best guess is that they will discredit the science or the scientist with lots of media hype of course. There is no way that governments will give up on the lucrative green house taxes...It is too much to drool over.