Climatic Research Unit (Photo courtesy CRU)
Professor Philip Jones, the embattled director of the East Anglia Climatic Research Unit, announced today that he will step aside from his directorship while the University of East Anglia (UEA) commissions an independent review of his activities as described in the e-mails and documents in the CRU Archive.
Jones' announcement was formally accepted by UEA Vice-Chancellor Edward Acton. Professor Peter Liss took over the CRU as Acting Director. (Liss was mentioned in two of the e-mails in the Archive, dating back to 1997 and 1999, and was never mentioned again.)
I have accepted Professor Jones's offer to stand aside during this period. It is an important step to ensure that CRU can continue to operate normally and the independent review can conduct its work into the allegations.
We will announce details of the Independent Review, including its terms of reference, timescale and the chair, within days.
The outcome of this review is impossible to predict, as indeed Jones' announcement was. Prior to this afternoon, neither Jones nor anyone else connected with the CRU or the University of East Anglia dropped so much as a hint that any such action was in the offing. Rumors abounded that he might have to resign, and environmentalist blogger George Monbiot called for his resignation--or perhaps he was only pretending to, while having fun at the expense of skeptics of the proposition of anthropogenic global warming (AGW). (Monbiot has twice criticized the handling of this affair by Jones and the UEA, though he tempers his criticism with the unproved assertion that AGW skeptics "have lied, obscured and cheated for years.")
Professor Trevor Davies, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research at UEA, will probably lead the investigation, according to the Associated Press. He continues to deny that anything in the CRU Archive can legitimately impugn the quality of the CRU's publications--a proposition that many commentators have sharply disputed.
The temporary stand-down of Jones comes at an inauspicious moment for AGW alarmists. Dr. Michael E. Mann, the architect of the "Hockey Stick," is now under a review of his own, though he has not been asked to take any administrative or other leave. Senator James M. Inhofe (R-OK) has followed through on his announcement of last week that he would be pressing for an investigation of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and of any US federal agency that was cooperating with it or the CRU. Most significantly, the UEA's action casts a shadow on the upcoming Copenhagen conference on climate change, scheduled to begin on December 7.
The London Times might be casting a few shadows of its own over the Copenhagen conference. Anthony Watts, at WattsUpWithThat, today carried a link to this story by the Times describing the hypocritical displays of conspicuous consumption on the part of many celebrities, both American and British, who are at the forefront of AGW advocacy. Interestingly, the Times article mentions George Monbiot by name as having taken some of these celebrities to task for not practicing what they (and he) are preaching.
ADDENDUM: Among the commenters on Anthony Watts' post reproducing the University of East Anglia statement was a man identifying himself as Stephen Brown, who had this to say:
This evening (UK time) I was in an IM conversation with three good friends of mine about an entirely unrelated subject (classic and almost-classic cars). My friends are Professors, in engineering (2) and orthopaedics (1).
The topic of Phil Jones came up when news of his “stepping aside” broke.
All three Professors agreed that he’s committed academic suicide. There is no way back into Academia for him. Ever.
Remember that this is happening in England. Our society might be ravaged by a socialist government but certain standards are still maintained, especially by honest gentlemen.
At minimum, this comment (assuming that it is not a fabrication) indicates that, should Phil Jones be dismissed from UEA, he could never hope to obtain another academic appointment at any other institution. At maximum, it means that Phil Jones is being "thrown under the bus," and that the "review" that he faces, far from being a whitewash, will be more in the nature of a drumhead court.
Like this article? Want to be notified of more? Click Subscribe above.
Comments