The Guardian

No, it isn’t a leftwing plot, it’s a proposal I authored for the Conservatives in 2021. And it could be brilliantly transformative for England

Last week saw the launch of what could be – if done right – the most important political policy in a generation. You may not have heard about the new land use framework, but if you did hear something, chances are it wasn’t good. “National suicide!” declared the shadow farming minister, Robbie Moore, who described the policy for good measure as “food lunacy”.

I should confess that I am the original author of this lunacy. It was one of the key recommendations of the 2021 National Food Strategy – an independent review I was commissioned to write by the then Tory government. The purpose of the land use framework was – is – sane enough. It is intended to inform and streamline planning decisions and steer other government incentives, to ensure that areas of land are used in ways they are naturally well suited to.

The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world

Research shows move to electric vehicles may not be enough to enable pollution from cars to be eradicated

Microscopic particles emitted from brake pads can be more toxic than those emitted in diesel vehicle exhaust, a study has found.

This research shows that even with a move to electric vehicles, pollution from cars may not be able to be eradicated.

Parts of the Midwest have seen temperatures 15-30C below the climate average, while Australia temperatures hit almost 50C

Disruptive weather has continued to affect the US this week, with a mixture of winter hazards, heavy rainfall and extreme temperatures across the country. Extreme cold warnings have affected more than 90 million people, with parts of the midwest seeing temperatures about 15-30C below the climate average.

Temperatures fell to about -35C earlier this week across states including Montana and North Dakota, with maximum daytime temperatures reaching -15C.

Consumption in wealthy countries including US and UK is responsible for 13% of global forest loss beyond their borders, study finds

The world’s wealthiest nations are “exporting extinction” by destroying 15 times more biodiversity internationally than within their own borders, research shows.

Most wildlife habitats are being destroyed in countries with tropical forest, according to the study which looked at how wealthy countries’ demand for products such as beef, palm oil, timber and soya beans is destroying biodiversity hotspots elsewhere.

Adrián Simancas was kayaking in Bahía El Águila in the strait of Magellan when the whale engulfed him and his yellow kayak for a few seconds before letting him go. He was unharmed. Simancas's father, Dell, who was kayaking with him, recorded the incident

• Just a fluke: whale briefly swallows kayaker in incident captured on camera

Scientists say more-frequent hotter temperatures in west African region are part of reason for reduced harvests and price rises

The climate crisis drove weeks of high temperatures in the west African region responsible for about 70% of global cacao production, hitting harvests and probably causing further record chocolate prices, researchers have said.

Farmers in the region have struggled with heat, disease and unusual rainfall in recent years, which have contributed to falling production.

Call for means-tested grants or loans to cover upfront costs that prevent poorer households from benefiting

Poorer households could cut their energy bills by a quarter if solar panels were installed on their rooftops, a report has found.

However, the upfront costs mean that those who stand to benefit most from decreased energy bills are prevented from getting panels installed, according to the Resolution Foundation thinktank.

Bogs and swamps are a colossal carbon store but their continued destruction would blow climate change targets

The world’s peatlands are “dangerously underprotected” despite the colossal amount of climate-heating carbon dioxide already being emitted due to their destruction, a study has warned.

Peatlands occupy just 3% of all land, but contain more carbon than all of the world’s forests. However, farmers and miners are draining the peatlands, releasing so much CO2 that if they were a country, they would be the fourth biggest polluter in the world after China, the US and India.

The technology is new, chargers are expensive and regulations hard to navigate – but all that could soon change

Our cars sit unused most of the time. If you have an electric vehicle, you might leave it charging at home or work after driving it. But there’s another step you could take. If you have a bidirectional charger, you can set it to sell power back to the grid when demand is high.

Fewer than 10 people across Australia actually do this, because the technology – known as vehicle-to-grid (V2G) – is very new. To date, it only works with a single car model (Nissan Leaf) and a single charger (Wallbox Quasar 1). We’ve estimated the number of users based on sales of this charger. The chargers are expensive and there’s a thicket of regulations to navigate.

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You originally think of it as a car you can also use to power your house. [But actually] it’s a house battery you can drive around.

Experts say latest results show clean energy investment is getting back on track, with $9bn committed in 2024

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Investment in large-scale wind and solar in Australia has reached its highest level in six years, with $9bn in capital committed to projects in 2024, new industry data shows.

According to the Clean Energy Council, financial commitments were made for 4,346MW of new renewable capacity last year. This was the highest level of investment the sector had seen since 2018, when industry was delivering on the bipartisan Renewable Energy Target.

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Critically endangered bird detected after analysis of tens of thousands of hours of song meter recordings

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Critically endangered plains-wanderers have been found living in Melbourne’s west for the first time in more than 30 years.

Notoriously elusive and difficult to spot, the rare birds were detected on two pockets of remnant grassland by Zoos Victoria, with the help of AI.

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Greenpeace protest draws attention to worsening typhoons and demands accountability from major polluters

For two days and two nights, Ronalyn Carbonel and her four children clung to the roof of their home as a huge storm raged around them. With the wind battering her village of Rizal, about 10 miles east of Manila in the Philippines, and water swirling through the rooms below them, they had no choice but to wait, hoping that someone would come to rescue them and hundreds of their neighbours.

“We did not have shelter, we did not have food … we just had to wait for the government for two days,” Carbonel said. “It is not easy, no electricity, no light, we just wait for the sun to rise. The children were scared, we had never experienced anything like this.”

In three years Natural England has designated just two new SSSIs, which protect areas from development

The government’s wildlife watchdog for England is failing to halt the decline of nature after a sharp fall in the number of new places given top protection, according to campaigners.

On average over the past 15 years, Natural England has designated four new sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) each year. SSSIs are nationally or internationally important places for rare wildlife and habitats, meet strict criteria and are then usually protected from almost all possible development.

RHS is asking people to look for under-threat varieties such as the Sussex Bonfire and Mrs William Copeland

Britons have been asked to hunt for rare pink, white and “bonfire yellow” daffodils in order to save threatened varieties from extinction.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), which is running the daffodil count, is hoping to build a map of the spring blooms. It is asking people to log where daffodils are flowering in their area along with basic information such as colour, type and height.

Researchers found that most birds-of-paradise are biofluorescent – meaning they absorb light through their bodies

Birds-of-paradise are known for their bright and colourful plumage, but it turns out they are even more dazzling than previously thought.

Researchers have found 37 of the 45 species show biofluorescence – in other words, patches of their plumage or other body parts absorb UV or blue light, and emit light at lower frequencies.

Airport’s chief executive to formally spell out expansion plans in speech at British Steel plant in Scunthorpe

Heathrow will submit third runway proposals to the government this summer, pledging to use UK steel and boost growth, the airport has confirmed.

Its chief executive, Thomas Woldbye, will formally spell out plans for a third runway to follow a multibillion-pound upgrade of the London airport’s existing terminals and facilities, in a speech at the British Steel plant in Scunthorpe on Wednesday.

Scientists observe decreased motor function in rodents exposed to microplastics

Microplastics can move through mice brains and block blood vessels, essentially mimicking blood clots that could potentially be fatal or otherwise disrupt brain function.

The findings are detailed in a peer-reviewed paper for which researchers for the first time used real-time imaging to track bits of plastic as they moved through and accumulated in brain blood vessels. When one piece of plastic got stuck, others accumulated behind it, like a “car crash”, the authors reported.

Social media storm of misinformation about Bovaer has drawn in Reform UK, the dairy industry and even Bill Gates

Scientists say a recent methane-related conspiracy theory was “a wake-up call” for the industry, reminding them they need to communicate better and more directly with the public.

Over the last few months, Bovaer, a cattle feed additive that is proven to reduce emissions of the greenhouse gas, has been at the centre of a swirl of misinformation, drawing in Reform UK, the dairy industry and even the billionaire Bill Gates.

Industry says ‘pavement tax’ due to disparity in VAT rates is holding back transition away from fossil fuels

Electric vehicle drivers will spend an extra £85m on UK tax when using public car chargers this year because of a disparity in VAT rates that the industry has said is holding back the transition away from fossil fuels.

Home users of electricity pay just 5% VAT compared with the 20% rate that applies to businesses – including electric car charger operators. That means that people charging a car using public chargers face higher costs.