Three cheers for Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, when she responded recently to a Green initiative to introduce blanket speed limits on German autobahns. ‘It won’t happen with me’, she is reported as saying.  She went on to point out that traffic jams and congestion are many times greater contributors to pollution and greenhouse gases than driving fast.

One of the great Green arguments against private car use, and in particular against large-engined cars, is the heavy fuel consumption arising from driving fast.  All too few people will actually argue that the most economical small diesel car in a traffic jam is doing ZERO mpg.  This is one area where the over-hyped Toyota Prius has a genuine advantage, but other manufacturers are catching up, with the Volkswagen BlueMotion and Mini range coming with an automatic start/stop system which turns the engine on and off in start/stop driving.  That Mini next to you in the traffic jam may actually be doing zero mpg!

Anyway, to return to my original point, I find it reassuring to hear of a politician that has a more panoramic view of the problem than most.