Lord (Richard) Hugh Cavendish
Credentials
Background
Lord (Richard) Hugh Cavendish has been a member of the House of Lords since 1990, having been appointed by then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. He sits on the EU Financial Affairs Sub-Committee and was a member of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 Committee between October 2017 and March 2018. [2], [3]
Lord Cavendish served in the Department of Energy, according to a 2015 interview with DeSmog UK, in which he also claimed to have been the first to build wind farms in Britain. [3]
Cavendish has funded the UK climate science denial group the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF). The size of his donation is unknown, although he claims it “wasn’t big bucks.” [3]
As a large landowner in Cumbria, Lord Cavendish has received significant farming subsidies through the EU‘s Common Agricultural Policy. A DeSmog report entitled “Wind farm subsidies bad, farm subsidies good?” revealed that Cavendish had received £93,905.60 in farming subsidies during 2014. [9]
Stance on Climate Change
April 2015
Cavendish said that he supports Lord Lawson, founder of the GWPF. Asked about his GWPF donation, Cavendish said: [3]
“I’ve made – I cannot remember what – quite a modest contribution and I think I look for a chance to support it if there is a debate… it definitely wasn’t big bucks, I can assure you.”
“I think the religious fervour element is seriously dangerous. I like to think Lord Lawson is on the side of the angels.” [3]
According to the GWPF, carbon dioxide emissions have been “mercilessly demonized as ‘carbon pollution’, when in fact it is a benefit to the planet.” [4]
Key Quotes
April 13, 2015
In an interview with DeSmog UK published in April 2015 he said: [3]
“I think I might be the first person in this country in fact to have built windmills and I was thinking at the time, ‘am I doing a good thing or a bad thing?’ and I came to the conclusion that it was the wrong thing actually, I was thinking lately.” [3]
When asked about his donation to the GWPF, he told DeSmog UK:
“I’ve made – I cannot remember what – quite a modest contribution and I think I look for a chance to support it if there is a debate… it definitely wasn’t big bucks, I can assure you.” [3]
Key Deeds
April, 2015
A DeSmog UK investigation revealed Lord Cavendish as a funder of the Global Warming Policy Foundation. [3]
May, 1990
Cavendish joined the House of Lords. [2]
Affiliations
- Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF) — Funder. [3]
- Conservative Party — Lord. [2]
- Holker Group — Board Member. [5]
- Bouthray Fisheries Limited — Director. (Company currently listed as dormant.) [6]
- Burlington Slate Limited — Director. [2]
- South Cumbria Rivers Trust — President. [7]
- Burlington Aggregates Limited — Director. [8]
Social Media
- @hugh_cavendish on Twitter
- Hugh Cavendish on Linkedin
Publications
Lord Cavendish does not appear to have published any articles in major news sources or other publications.
Resources
- “Hugh Cavendish,” LinkedIn. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- “Lord Cavendish of Furness,” UK Parliament. Archived December 20, 2018. Archive.fo URL: http://archive.fo/6BJNN
- Brendan Montague. “Exposed: Two Funders of Lord Lawson’s Climate Denial Charity Linked to Energy Industry,” DeSmog, April 13, 2015.
- Andrew Montford. “Unintended Consequences of Climate Change Policy” (PDF), Global Warming Policy Foundation, January 2015. Archived August 17, 2015.
- “Lucy Cavendish has high hopes for the Holker Group,” Choose Cumbria, June 23, 2016. Archived December 20, 2018. Archive.fo URL: http://archive.fo/3RqHv
- “Hugh Cavendish,” Companies House. Archived December 20, 2018. Archive.fo URL: http://archive.fo/LuXTU
- “Meet our team,” South Cumbria Rivers Trust. Archived December 20, 2018. Archive.fo URL: http://archive.fo/3FpXG
- “Richard Hugh Baron Cavendish,” Companies House. Archived January 7, 2019. Archive.fo URL: http://archive.fo/7B3oq
- Brendan Montague. “Wind farm subsidies bad, farm subsidies good?,” DeSmog, August 10, 2013.
Other Resources
Image Credit: Chris McAndrew/Wikimedia/CC BY 3.0
