Oligarchy run government while a lot of very much have been rumors that chance the dutch of lancaster one of johnsons deputies michael gove is supported by Rupert Murdoch i dont remember donald trump in interview when i was 1st with the British Press here michael did the interview Rupert Murdoch was in the room the entire time and michael gove actually went on the sunday political shows here in the u. K. To defend Boris Johnson and he offered this kind of less than spirited response to some question it was a really really simple question is it correct that by late february the u. K. Sent 266000 pieces of protective equipment to china. But i wont get into details to and fro on the sunday times story more details will be not so really simple. Yes why not to get into the u. K. To foreign help did issue a statement later that day and every some eyebrows because its actually sounded like downing street spin offering a play by play reporter at the sunday times this one particularly interesting ted. It states that the equipment they provided to china was not from the pandemic stockpile and that china has since reciprocated our donation many times over between april 2nd and april 15th we have received over 12000000 pieces of p. P. In the u. K. From china was p. V. Becoming increasingly crucial to the whole Coronavirus Response here may be we dont have the real figures here maybe 20000 have died from grown a verge why the briefing from downing street which has been there over the past few weeks against chinas it coming from Dominic Cummings well it does kind of seem like advised a job yes that does seem to be kind of a theme thats developing in regards the governments media line were going underground and no longer the only ones asking questions about the transparency of the governments press briefings and whether or not theyre actually providing valuable information or if theyre just an exercise in kind of real time narrative crafting and smoothing their for the lancet Richard Horton d who will get back to later even called them a sure rod at one point the u. K. Government declares it is transparent i think arguably the fact it has Daily Press Conferences every day shows that at least part of the problem lies in the limitations of the kind of social distancing Technology Like journalists are limited in sustained questioning even though the government have now allowed journalists to ask follow up questions are allowed one follow up question its kind of a stilted back and forth i know that you know very well the limitations of trying to pin someone down over skype but theres another thing that even casual observers have commented on and that the government ministers seem to be deflecting tough questions the medical professionals who kind of flank them at these press conferences and the skeptics in the press comes essentially as a front makes the government look transparent and science led without actually having to face the difficult scrutiny that would be required of these press conferences and all while presenting a front of calm while tens of thousands are dying kind of away from the t. V. Cameras and it seems to be working as according to hugo over 60 percent of british people think the u. K. Government is handling the current of our sponsors well so basically the British Government may be using press briefings to doj scrutiny about they have to give coronavirus. Well even in the best of circumstances getting answers out of government ministers obviously requires probing questions and adversarial journalism something which is arguably been hit and miss especially the beginning of this pandemic westminister journalists seem to kind of rally around the government after Boris Johnson suggested the u. K. Could take coronavirus on the chin through herd immunity i. T. V. Political editor and spectator columnist Robert Paston wrote kind of unchallenging article explaining the strategy there was at that time being predicted that it could lead to 500000. 00 deaths and then a day later the telegraph stated those questioning the governments current virus strategy are not only wrong theyre a danger to the rest of us and then subsequently when the government approach did change the b. B. C. Political editor laura can. Claim that the science of change when in reality it was the advice that changed since those early moments the housing fantasy slightly more scrutiny of the government ironically most vigorous from traditionally right wing figures like piers Morgan Andrew neil but so those journalists who are invited to the daily number 10 press briefing have been facing criticism for either not ask important questions or only asking them once theyve received backlash on social media but one b. B. C. Journalist surely shines as a i dont know whether it is navel ward where he seems to have stumbled into a great truth or one of these governments as well yeah so i was even following his presence as closely and there was one exchange from sunday night on the i thought it kind of embodied all the issues weve been talking about its was hosted by education secretary former secretary defense govern william one who said russia go away thats him and he was asked by the b. B. C. Is he pim this can you comment on reports today that stocks of he were allowed to run joan in the couple of years before. And why was more not done to get hold of more p. P. In march in early february including using British Company its nothing especially combative that hes then met with this government from the 1st moment we were in a situation where the scientific. Defiance was highlighting to us we were facing a real challenge in terms of a career and a virus and this could potentially evolve into a pandemic every resource of government has been to preach every resource of government thats kind of a big claim but then without really addressing anything further about the 2nd part of that question he throws to dr Jenny Harris Deputy chief medical officer who then says that the u. K. Regardless of the position that we may be in now or comment tree has been an international exemplar in preparedness and i think we have had if if i might say from my own professional perspective. We could perhaps have a more adult and more detailed conversation about p. P. Surprise so pim is allowed to follow a question this but he doesnt follow up on govern williamsons comment that the government has used every resource from the very beginning to tackle the pandemic seemingly in contrast the fact that the u. K. Death toll is one of the highest in the world at the moment and he also doesnt follow up and dr howard has gone to the u. K. As an exemplar in preparedness and her pound suggests that the conversation around p. P. Is childish as n. H. S. Staff are told where aprons because gowns are running out and off the deaths of at least a 100 u. K. Health workers so the government deflects these questions with revisionist statements and journalist kind of failed to pin them down and thats the problem you mentioned the editor of the lancet Richard Horton earlier he said after that press conference when you see supposedly independent medical advisers to government tell what a manifest untruth to shore up a political regime whose credibility is rapidly collapsing you have to say that those advisors have lost their integrity and our trust and i contacted obviously number 10 in the u. K. Department of health but then gave out all the time to this board thank you. Nature is sending us a message those are the words of un environment chief in granderson and today on earth day she joins me from copenhagen in denmark thanks so much anger for coming on our get. The message nature is sending us but is coronavirus shaking up geo politics maybe no more fracking after the collapse of oil futures Greenhouse Gas emissions apparently their focus to reduce by a quarter in europe at 2020 thanks to all the lockdowns. Well 1st of all i dont think that we should consider the lock down civil lining to in my mental helps because we know that a 1000000000 children are out of school and people falling into poverty so the connections between Climate Change and coronavirus are somewhat they are not as clear as many people think they are clearly the virus appears nothing to do with Climate Change but we could say this that is Climate Change in hanss on increases we expect to see ecosystems shifts we expect to see the movements of some of the vectors that bring about Climate Change bring about pathogens and to see uses ticks mosquitoes etc and so we need to understand that Climate Change and of course if we see permafrost melt then we could see the release of completely unknown viruses and its in thats setting now we need to think about Climate Change and viruses so there really is that link though between climate and prevalence of pandemics i mean what the whole capitalist idea of destroying forests that is related to future prospects of pandemics forests of course are very helpful as c o 2 up so over as we know but thats not the issue the link between the virus and Climate Change we have course the virus by moving species into places where they dont belong either legal wildlife trade or encroaching into wildlife have habitats of course Climate Change you need to think about future impact that Climate Change may have in a 3 to 4 degree world what would happen which new viruses would occur and unless we take action really with us and there was there was shifts happen we will see species who would or and more and that could lead to a whole new set of eyes. So one thing is a virus the current current next in which we will get through Climate Change thats a different story we need to take action now on Climate Change exactly so that we do not see something much bigger and much worse than what were seeing in todays weather so the message that nature is sending is not as some people have accused the government here of saying basically eugenics on the mace of cluster because it was grown a virus hit disproportionally the poor you think it is very much to do with biodiversity which of course is impacted on by Climate Change of course i mean we know that today 75 percent of new Infectious Diseases are so not sick in nature what does that mean it means that they come out of the animal world. 75 percent thats not a small percentage humans have altered 75 percent of the worlds surface and so that was terrestrial so therefore in that in gauging and and altering we had moved species iran and and so yes i mean by any any any epidemiologist can tell you that of course so no c. S. And zoonotic diseases are the primary. Diseases Infectious Diseases of course to date 60 percent of known effects seizes us an article in nature so yes absolutely by most years that the core of the solution does not mean that we need to be enemies of nature because we need nature and nature only produces it would read there were we drink and the clothes we wear i know you said the 25 percent or 50 percent of pharmaceutical products are derived from genetic or sources and of course that the whole so in the context of lack of biodiversity but what about Health Care Systems just finally because i know you had a long experience of the world bank do you think that our experience with kobe will mean that the world bank and i. M. F. Will no longer threaten developing nations with privatization of universal Health Care Provision in the global south well what weve seen certainly from our friends at w t o is that when you have strong Health Care Systems these systems have been able to stand up and we should obviously loot all the Health Care Workers and everyone else and working in the Health Sector and making our societies go around what we need now is to ensure that Health Systems across the well theyre talking to each other and exchanging Information Science knowledge insight and as the secretary general has called for Global Solidarity at this time we 3 know if we did not know it before we know that we are all connected on this world and so one virus is not not the war also by a virus is harmed by good house care for all. You say that because the w. H. O. Secretary general is governed attack from the president of United States and indeed the entire w. H. O. Has been threatened with the funding because of its alleged lack of competence when it comes to world health well lets take a look at smallpox which is quoted as a disease that thanks to w h o o and the global effort it has been eradicated from from the face of the us lets i have lived many many years in africa and i can tell you that to support the w. H. O. Provides the research that w o h o does is 2nd to none then grants and thank you. After the break on the 1st earth day amidst a Global Pandemic we talked to the architect of the 2015 paris Climate Change agreement christiane if you get as about why politics is critical to give out a few survival all the people coming over but theyre going underground. Has changed lives but pharmaceutical companies have a miraculous solution. Based drugs to people who are chronic pain patients and believe that their prescription is working for them in the remedy. To the price that they pay closer dependency and addiction to opiates to long term use that really isnt scientifically just now study actually suggest that. The long term effects may not just be the absence of benefit but actually that they may be causing long term. Welcome back today marks the earth today but with global emissions set to drop 5 and a half percent this year thanks to growing a virus according to one ngo its still way off the 7. 6 percent agreed under the 2015 paris climate agreement joining me now is the architect of that agreement Christiana Figueres your thoughts how humans can avoid extinction in a new book the future we choose surviving the Climate Crisis in north way everyone from Leonardo Dicaprio to former u. N. Secretary general ban ki moon also on this show in the past few weeks he joins me now via skype from costa rica thanks for coming back on so its us today in this book you say everyone understands that were all in this together do you think that an earth today amidst a Global Pandemic illustrates that well thanks for having me on on such a special day actually i mean exciting to be celebrating the 50th anniversary of earth day and. Asked what town will what contacts to be celebrating earth day when we are so deeply reminded about the direct relationship between nature our and our human lives how and when were so deeply reminded of the 5 that there is no such thing as one person being completely immune to either Climate Change or to coronavirus if there is someone else that is suffering under it we are only protected if everyone is protected that is true of the coronavirus that is true of Climate Change so what a day whatever reminder except of course somebody might say were not in it together it affects some people disproportionately i want to go to an event in the book where you are obviously very aware that where were all word to knit together you talk about how when you were negotiating the Paris Agreement and un security given ohanlon an officer came in and told you a bomb had been found people are against the things that you represent yes that was not 2 weeks or 2 and a half weeks after the terrorist attack and terrorist and hence we were under very very high security because we had 150 heads of state under one roof in one day and of course it would have been very tempting to to do something terrible so we were under very high security we did find a bomb a few days after the heads of state our had laughed and and there was a decision to be maims do we then close the negotiations and very possibly not ever get a global structure to lead the economy to lord de carbon ization as science is demanding or do we brave it through and thats not an easy decision to take but the common. Good and what is actually beneficial for all has to be paramount you know all about not being as we emerge out of the Coronavirus Crisis who do things winning in the lobbying because theyre lying their companies are obviously begging for money and obviously airlines are something your book suggests are not exactly the greatest industry as regards. Whether humanity will survive into the future well every sectors of course begging for support to our and lets remember the priority of the sequence in which support has to be given number one the acute Health Crisis and number one we have to support Health Systems are and Health Professionals in every country number 2 we have to be able to d build a much better social protection that especially for the people who have lost their income and lost their jobs and number 3 your question about airlines comes as number 3 wave of Financi