Evidence of deception surfaces

Steve McIntyre

A retired Edinburgh scientist and academic is at the centre of allegations of  incompetence or cover up in his high profile investigation of an alleged deception which has been influential in science and public policy.

Retired Edinburgh University Professor Geoffrey Boulton was the key investigator in the 2010 Russell enquiry into charges of alleged misconduct at the University of East Anglia (UEA).

New evidence has surfaced which points to scientists at UEA deliberately concealing adverse data which contradicted their central assertion that late 20th century temperatures were unprecedented in the last thousand years.  This assertion had become widely accepted by policy makers and contributed to the evidence underpinning the ground breaking Climate Change (Scotland) Act, 2009.

Allegations of malpractice at the influential Climatic Research Unit at the UEA intensified after an unauthorised release in November 2009 of thousands of emails from the university.  

The emails appeared to indicate malpractice by some scientists, and in the face of intense criticism, Professor Boulton was a leading member of the enquiry appointed to investigate. 

In the last few weeks, following the release of data by the University of East Anglia in response to Freedom of Information procedures, criticism of the conduct of the enquiry has focused on Professor Boulton for failing to investigate adequately key allegations.

The allegations from a Canadian, Steve McIntyre, appear to have been substantiated by the data in a recent FOI release showing that evidence contradicting the assertions of unprecedented twentieth century warming was knowingly suppressed.

Submissions to the Russell inquiry had flagged up concerns, but were either ignored or examined in a cursory manner.

The Russell inquiry largely exonerated the UEA scientists and has been widely quoted in defence of them.  Professor Boulton, whose appointment to the Russell enquiry team was strongly criticised at the time, had previously worked at the University of East Anglia for some eighteen years, including a period overlapping with one or more of the scientists he was investigating.

The new information and a more detailed account are summarised in The Yamal Deception which is available for £0.75 here, or on the meticulously detailed evidence laid out by Steve McIntyre.