Let’s talk about the Alliance of British Drivers ( @TheABD). They’ve rebranded & their current website looks quite respectable. You can still link to the old one from the new site. Here’s their ‘environment’ page: http://original.abd.org.uk/env.htm . Shock, horror - they’re climate cranks. /1

This is less surprising when you understand that their director, Paul Biggs, is a climate change skeptic who has written extensively on the subject. Paul thinks that “The United Nations Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change exists in order to provide a biased official... /2

... version of climate science in order to promote the UN agenda of wealth redistribution from developed to developing countries” and has railed against “driver bashing in the false name of climate control”. Did I mention he’s their director? /3

On their ‘old’ website (which they still promote), they sing the praises of 4x4s (which are the second-largest contributor to the increase in global CO2 emissions since 2010 after the power sector); deny air pollution is a problem, argue for more motorway & road building... /4

... and rail against bus lanes, cyclists, congestion charging, fuel tax, parking restrictions (including fines & fees), further restrictions on drink driving, speed cameras, traffic calming, speed limits, vehicle excise duty & VAT on cars, spare parts & repairs. /5

They delude themselves into claiming to be the ‘voice of the British driver’, but in reality are a fringe libertarian pro-motor industry lobby group, who run astroturf campaigns (more of this later) to fight against progress on climate justice, air pollution & active travel. /6

The good news is that as of March 2020, Pro Motor Ltd, the company that owns the ABD ‘brand’, only has £22,000 in assets - so we can expose them as much as we like as the cranks, dinosaurs & laughing stocks they deserve to be, without too much risk of comeback repercussion. /7

There isn’t any info about the ABD’s patrons on the new website. Luckily, its still on the old one. If they’re going for a veneer of respectability to improve their credibility, it’s no wonder they’re not exactly forthcoming - it’s a distinctly narrow, right wing lineup. /8

First up is the odious Godfrey Bloom, whose views were was too extreme even for UKIP, so he got booted by Nigel Farage. Oh, and he’s a climate change denier who thinks that global warming is a sham created to extract more tax from ordinary people. Nice. /9

Then there’s the DUP’s Sammy Wilson, a walking encyclopaedia of backward opinions. He thinks that man-made climate change is a "myth based on dodgy science”, a “gigantic con” & a “hysterical semi-religion.” He was briefly the Northern Ireland Assembly’s environment minister. /10

Next up is the Brexit Party’s Jill Seymour, who is also UKIP’s former transport spokesperson. She thinks consumer choice for motorists is more important than action on emissions reduction and believed drivers of diesel vehicles are unfairly discriminated against. /11

Finally, a brace of Tories. Karl McCartney, when he’s not in trouble for sharing Tommy Robinson posts, making abusive comments or alleged election funding scandals, actually recognises climate change, though his voting record on measures to address it is consistently woeful. /12

Lastly, Tory MP David Morris is an angel by comparison, but has nearly always voted against measures to prevent climate change - and he snaffled up a £3,700 expenses-paid trip to Azerbaijan courtesy of the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic. /13

Let’s now turn to the ABD’s 4 directors. The Brians - MacDowall & Gregory - aren’t particularly online much. MacDowall is a former UKIP councillor in Kent, which figures. Gregory, when not obsessing over how hard-done-by drivers are, posts climate crank idiocy on Facebook. /14

We’ve already talked about Paul Biggs. The accounts he follows on Twitter are dominated by climate cranks, UKIP & assorted hard right libertarians. Don’t let the ABD fool you: there’s a clear & divisive political agenda behind their purported support for ‘ordinary drivers’. /15

Ian Taylor is proud of his involvement with groups favoured by suburban businessmen for whom the EDL is a bit vulgar – the Taxpayers Alliance & the apartheid-loving, union-bashing Freedom Association. The Twitter accounts he follows are much the same garbage Biggs enjoys. /16

[The Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety ( @PACTS), of which ABD is a member, might be interested to know that its two directors who are on Twitter follow openly racist far right accounts including Paul Watson, Peter Sweden and Hope Not Hate Exposed] /17