The climate sceptic columnist Christopher Booker applauded her volte-face, arguing that previously she had been "under the spell" of her adviser the former UN ambassador Sir Crispin Tickell.

BBC: Margaret Thatcher: How PM legitimised green concerns

The three-member taskforce comprised Dr Harry Atkinson, formerly of the Science and Engineering Research Council and past chairman of the European Space Agency's Council, with Sir Crispin Tickell, Britain's former ambassador to the UN and Professor David Williams, from University College, London.

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