Caroline Lucas Displays a Fine Sense of Perspective...

Caroline Lucas, a British MEP and leader of the Green Party, has achieved her goal of causing controversy and getting her name in the papers by making a series of ridiculous claims.

The worst of these claims is that people who regularly fly abroad cause as much damage to the lives of others as knife-wielding criminals:

Caroline Lucas, the leader of the Green Party, suggested that travellers who regularly jet off to the Costas are threatening the lives of others - and do as much damage as thugs who stab people in the street.

Ms Lucas, who is also a Member of the European Parliament, made the controversial comment during a televised ITV debate about plans for a proposed third runway at Heathrow. She also hit out ‘binge flying’ and people who have second homes abroad.

When asked if flying to Spain was as bad as knifing a person in the street, Ms Lucas said: ‘Yes - because they are dying from climate change.’

Ms Lucas also claimed that poor air quality makes Britain ‘the dirty old man of Europe’, saying that London’s air quality levels are so low they breach European safety standards.

After the exchange David Campbell-Bannerman a prospective MEP candidate for the UK Independence Party, who also attended the debate, said: 'I was shocked.

'There's no excuse for using extremist language to describe ordinary people going by plane to a well-earned holiday. Calling it "binge flying" is absurd.'

Ms Lucas began her career as an activist in the anti-nuclear movement with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and went on to become one of the Green Party's first MEP's.

She has been a staunch critic of the proposed third runway at Heathrow and has fiercely opposed the government's aviation policy.

A Green Party spokesman said the comments have been taken out of context.

Of course they were. I notice he makes no attempt to put them 'in context', however.

Comparing ordinary people who go on holiday to violent criminals is not only ludicrous and disgustingly offensive, but dangerous.

We see too much of this in the modern world - moral relativism. The idea that because one disagrees with someone they must be evil, like a criminal, or, popularly, like Hitler. At least she never resorted to that old cliche.

Especially considering Hitler was actually a staunch environmentalist ahead of his time.

If you imagine a world in which people like Caroline Lucas had serious power, perhaps we can see why - it all comes down to control and power. They will tell us who can travel and why, as well as what constitutes a good reason. Of course, none of the restrictions would apply to the Green Elite, would they?

I wonder how often Caroline jets off on the taxpayer's pound? Or does she simply go to Brussels first class on the Eurostar instead? All in the name of a better world, obviously, like the whole European project.

What would life be like if you couldn't fly in environmental experts to lecture other people about how they shouldn't travel?

As far as the problems of modern Britain go, I think that violent thugs are quite close to the top of the list, and unsubstantiated claims about what the Earth's climate might be like in 200 years are a fair way down near the bottom.

Maybe if Caroline had to live in the real world for just a day, she'd realise this. But then, she is an MEP and living in a bubble is about all they're good for.