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Climate change belief given same legal status as religion
An executive has won the right to sue his employer on the basis that
he was unfairly dismissed for his green views after a judge ruled that
environmentalism had the same weight in law as religious and
philosophical beliefs.

By Stephen Adams and Louise Gray
Published: 3:11PM GMT 03 Nov 2009

Comments 104 | Comment on this article

Tim Nicholson: Mr Nicholson, 42, from Oxford, told a previous hearing
that his views were so strong that he refused to travel by air and had
renovated his house to be environmentally-friendly. Photo: PA
In a landmark ruling, Mr Justice Michael Burton said that "a belief in
man-made climate change ... is capable, if genuinely held, of being a
philosophical belief for the purpose of the 2003 Religion and Belief
Regulations".

The ruling could open the door for employees to sue their companies
for failing to account for their green lifestyles, such as providing
recycling facilities or offering low-carbon travel.


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Belief in man-made climate change as important as religious faith? The
decision regards Tim Nicholson, former head of sustainability at
property firm Grainger plc, who claims he was made redundant in July
2008 due to his "philosophical belief about climate change and the
environment".

In March, employment judge David Heath gave Mr Nicholson permission to
take the firm to tribunal over his treatment.

But Grainger challenged the ruling on the grounds that green views
were political and based on science, as opposed to religious or
philosophical in nature.

John Bowers QC, representing Grainger, had argued that adherence to
climate change theory was "a scientific view rather than a
philosophical one", because "philosophy deals with matters that are
not capable of scientific proof."

That argument has now been dismissed by Mr Justice Burton, who last
year ruled that the environmental documentary An Inconvenient Truth by
Al Gore was political and partisan.

The decision allows the tribunal to go ahead, but more importantly
sets a precedent for how environmental beliefs are regarded in English
law.

Mr Nicholson, 42, from Oxford, told a previous hearing that his views
were so strong that he refused to travel by air and had renovated his
house to be environmentally-friendly.

But his beliefs led to frequent clashes with Grainger's other
managers, while he said that Rupert Dickinson, the firm's chief
executive, treated his concerns with "contempt".

Once Mr Dickinson flew a member of staff to Ireland to deliver his
Blackberry mobile phone after leaving it in London, Mr Nicholson
claimed.

Mr Nicholson hailed the Employment Appeals Tribunal ruling as "a
victory for common sense" but stressed climate change was "not a new
religion".

He said: "I believe man-made climate change is the most important
issue of our time and nothing should stand in the way of diverting
this catastrophe.

"This philosophical belief that is based on scientific evidence has
now been given the same protection in law as faith-based religious
belief.

"Belief in man-made climate change is not a new religion, it is a
philosophical belief that reflects my moral and ethical values and is
underlined by the overwhelming scientific evidence."

His lawyer Shah Qureshi, head of employment law at Bindmans LLP,
argued that if the ruling had gone against them, "the end result would
be that the more evidence there is to support your views, the less
likely it would be for you to enjoy protection against
discrimination".

Grainger now plans to contest Mr Nicholson's claim of unfair dismissal
at tribunal.

Dave Butler, its corporate affairs director, said: "This decision
merely confirms that views on the importance of environmental
protection are capable of amounting to a philosophical belief.

"We are looking forward to addressing the issues at tribunal level and
demonstrating that there was no causal link between Mr Nicholson's
beliefs and his redundancy."

The grounds for Mr Nicholson's case stem from changes to employment
law made by Baroness Scotland, the Attorney General, in the Employment
Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations 2003.

The regulations effectively broaden the protection to cover not just
religious beliefs or those "similar" to religious beliefs, but
philosophical beliefs as well.

 

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[huge snip]

On the other hand you could have posted a link.