Crumbling RAAC concrete, an easy cheap building material with a 30 year life, is failing and dangerous more than 40 years later.

Are we surprised? Medieval churches, built of stone with oak timber ceiling vaults remain safe, like many old buildings. The Food Bank checks the use-by dates on product, as many of us do. Christmas puddings were created to store fruit long-term and often have dates for the following Christmas; mince pies do not.

Our Constitution, with its many strengths and faults, has continued for centuries. Each Parliament has a term of only five years, though many members stay on longer. In the early 17th Century, oak trees were planted in the New Forest to provide masts and timbers for the Royal Navy, equipping Nelson's fleet which stopped the French centuries later!

After more than 40 years of building with porous concrete, we are waking up to the danger that it is past its "use by" date. How long will it be before we realise that global warming and climate change have already started? Will our children and grandchildren, 40 years from now, think it was our fault that there were no warnings that it would get so bad?

Long-term thinking is not given serious attention. Politicians in our democracy want voters to choose what is preferable for the next five years. A cheap and quickly available material for building new schools easily gained approval 40 years ago. Decision makers knew they would be well gone before the 30 year life span began to expire; people at the time were pleased to have quick and inexpensive buildings.

Short-term decisions are being made around the long term issue of climate change. Offshore wind farms were delayed because there was not enough profit to attract investment. Activists are in uproar about the Rosebank oil field and new exploration licences, but it is the consumption of oil and gas that creates global warming, not the source of supply. People are rushing around, with air travel and cars back to pre-pandemic levels. Running to the gym could save the fees, dogs could walk their owners around the neighbourhood.

Electric cars are only more efficient if the batteries are produced with minimum carbon emissions. Delays to make electric vehicles mandatory may not be so bad. At present, most batteries come from China whose industry is a major emitter. The UK will soon have Cornish mines producing Lithium, the key constituent of current batteries, with Cornwall the only source in Europe. British battery factories are being built. Delaying the switch to electric cars may coincide with the availability of lower carbon UK made batteries, reducing overall emissions.

The carbon footprint in Europe is reducing, but worldwide reductions are urgently needed. The "transport" sector in the UK is the largest emitter, more than "energy supply" or the "residential sector". In Europe, Germany is by far the worst. Since 1990, China increased emissions nearly three times, now 28% of the world total, while the EU has reduced by 24%. Buying goods from China and cars made in Germany are clearly bad environmental choices. The textile industry adds to climate change; buying and discarding cheap fashions is reported adding 10% to world emissions.

We are not the biggest country nor the worst polluter per person, but all of us are in this together. We must all play our own part.