Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
THE WORLD’S LARGEST toymaker, Denmark’s Lego, has said it would stop all its Russian operations, ending the employment of its Moscow staff and a partnership with a company operating 81 stores in Russia.
A Lego spokeswoman said the company had decided to “indefinitely cease commercial operations in Russia given the continued extensive disruption in the operating environment”.
This included terminating the employment of most of the Moscow-based team and a partnership with Inventive Retail Group which “operated 81 stores on the brand’s behalf”, the spokeswoman added.
The company had already halted deliveries to Russia in March following the invasion of Ukraine.
“We confirm the termination of the contract with Lego,” a spokeswoman for Inventive Retail Group told AFP on Tuesday.
“Our company will continue to work as an expert in the category of construction and educational toys,” she added.
In early May, Russia placed Lego products on a list of goods that could be imported without the agreement of the intellectual property owner in order to bypass restrictions imposed over the conflict in Ukraine.
Among the list published by the industry and commerce ministry were Apple and Samsung smartphones, major car brands, game consoles and spare parts used in various industries.
Lego’s net profit rose 63 percent last year to 1.8 billion rubles (about $30 million at the current exchange rate), according to info in the Spark financial and legal database cited in the Russian business newspaper RBK.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Ultimately, Ireland could go Zero emissions tomorrow and it would have near zero impact on earths climate. Regardless of what we do, it will not be up to us what way this swings.
@Gavin Conran: Maybe, but we all have to do our bit. Should I toss my litter on the ground because it’s pointless putting it in the bin if other people litter? It’s only if we are all doing all we can that China will feel the pressure to change their own path too.
@Gavin Conran: that’s a lazy, populist cop-out.
@Steve: Ah yes, the Chinese are feeling the pressure from carbon tax hikes the Irish have been delt during a fuel crisis!….. That’ll make em quake in their booties
@Steve: I agree 100%. In fact I believe Ireland could play a very strong role in Green Technology R&D and become a global player if the will was there.
My comment is simply in regards to the way this article is framed.
@Glenn O h’Ailpín: How so? My statement is fact, not an opinion. We can go Zero emissions tomorrow and have no impact on that potential tempture climb.
@Gavin Conran: But we still have to look after Irelands environment. With our own actions we can still reduce pollution in our own air and water, etc. Its not China’s fault the air in Cork and Dublin is unsafe and half our waterways are badly polluted. And we have to look after our own wildlife and ecosystems. You can’t blame China and America for everything, even though I would agree that they are to shoulder most of the burden on the global scale.
@Sumsoar Khan: I also agree. My comment is in regards to how this article was framed in the sense that Ireland is not making a big enough effort to swing that potential global temperature change. We will have zero impact on it. Thats not to say though that we can’t make differences here at home that benefit our air quality and thus our quality of living etc.
@Gavin Conran: “Regardless of what we do, it will not be up to us what way this swings.” This is untrue, we can be part of the change, and influence other countries.
Every large country is simply made up of areas the same size as Ireland. What do you say to every Irish-sized city in China/India? We can’t just pass the buck. We fix our own house first. We lead by example.
@Shane Lynn: No, it’s true when taken in the context of what I was replying to, which was an article stating by the time Ireland takes action it might be too late, which was referencing our emissions.
@Glenn O h’Ailpín: really…ok break it all down for us so plesse!
@Shane Lynn: nonsense most people in the world don’t know where Ireland is or what it is
@Gavin Conran: Any individual on the planet can go zero emissions tomorrow and it won’t make a difference. Therefore none of us should bother and we can let the world burn.
Personally, I think we’re screwed on climate as we (the human race) won’t or can’t change.
@Mickey Finn: Nice cop out. So now we can party like its 1999, right.????!!! When the rubber hits the road bigtime in 1 to 5 years of continuing and accelerating global climate disasters and all the big country players act in panic to move from the “business as usual” model that we in Ireland assume will go on for ever, then they erect massive trade barriers to countries not pulling their weight on climate change mitigation measures, well where will we be then? We will be forced to change or starve because there will be a massive economic crisis and no hope of subsidies from other climate change embattled nations. Change now or be destroyed is the message.
@mmz: populist hyperbolic nonsense. We should act when these other countries have lead the way. Why bankrupt Irish citizens when we are in one of the countries going to be least effected by climate change?
Should we make changed in the meantime? Yes of course but measured and economically neutral/beneficial to the country only. The time for the hard choices is in the future when the rest of the world is already leading the way and the technology will be mass adopted further developed and cheaper as result. Think of us as one of those californians who bought the expensive prius cars in the early 2000s, it did next to nothing to effect climate change and cost them a fortune. We are not as wealthy as then to be throwing money away like that.
@Steve: China will feel the pressure about as much as Putin felt the pressure of international condemnation, which prevented him from invading Ukraine… Oh wait, it wasn’t that kind of movie…
@Steve: China isn’t going to give a second thought about what Ireland is doing. They’ll power on making tons of money while we squander our trade advantage by constantly increasing our cost of living here in a futile effort to have an effect on climate change.
If your neighbours are dumping truckloads of litter on the ground daily then you throwing one sweet wrapper on the ground makes zero difference.
@Gavin Conran: you’re not spouting facts. You said you are stating a fact when you said it would have zero impact. Are you rounding down to zero or what? It’s simply true it would have zero impact, perhaps negligible but not zero. So you are not talking facts. Get your story right man.
@Steve: no we don’t.
@Steve: that litter analogy is ridiculous – putting litter in the bin cannot be compared to taxes which impact more on the disadvantaged. Look at the money being made through data centres yet these consume far more electric than households.
@Steve: We are doing our bit and will do more. This constant guilt trip is annoying.
You catch more bees with honey than vinegar. makes total sense here.
@mmz: We are changing and changing a lot. But threatening us, well it does not work very well. We dont like it and its turning people against the green agenda.
He would have all in poverty and it would not make a difference. China India need to do most
@Simbacat: they are already in poverty. Think that what they really need over there… is a little bit more poverty. That will teach them.
@Simbacat: If we had more renewable energy our fuel bills would be cheaper. Why do people assume that going green is going to cost us?
@Nicholas McMurry: Yes, and even though most people can’t afford to live near where they work, if we had decent public transport here, they wouldn’t need to run cars. I think the current Dáil is under the impression that everyone can do their recycling and commuting by private car although apartments have so few places to charge them.
@Nicholas McMurry: because the pay back is nearly 50 years after grants.
@Nicholas McMurry: Because the people who are profitting and/or benefitting from the fossil fuel industry and the capitalist economic system spent a lot of money marketing the idea that changing the system will be worse than the consequences of the current one. We can create a sustainable and fair economic system, and communities, without sacrificing modern conveniences. What most people don’t realise is that what they fear could happen by changing, will happen if we don’t act, and act now.
@Nicholas McMurry: As it will and when you have little money food versus power is a decision that is often made.
Stop blaming Ireland.
@Brian Heffernan: Head in the sand helps no-one. We have responsibility and we have to do our part. Despite the claim some make that we alone are trying to save the planet we are only (just) attempting to do our fair share, such is the measure of the mess the world has got itself into.
Unless der putting a dome over ireland , der aint going be much of a change with our efforts
@Denis Gallery:
There is a major problem in your argument if every country or place with a population similar to Ireland opts out of doing things…
Another failure to grasp that an unjust transition is no transition. The carbon tax is similar to VAT which predominantly affects the less well off. Carbon rationing which could be potentially very effective an fair needs to be looked at. Being prevented from buying turf while having to wait 5 years for a retrofits predominantly going to those who can afford the upfront costs is deeply unfair. Massive subsidies for private electric vehicle ownership and infrastructure again favouring those who can afford upfront costs. Very little consideration to the environmental impact of the huge numbers of data centres currently in planning application stage. 25,000 people (1% of the population) controlling 2 million hectares out of a total of 7 million in the entire state responsible for 18% of emissions. These people are most in a position to sequester carbon but are not only being called upon to do the least to reduce emissions but each being massively subsidised by the exchequer to continue producing the most environmentally destructive food almost all for the foreign rich. What people seem to fail to grasp is the absolute injustice of this FFFGGP transition which is not a transition but just business as usual social injustice with environmentalism as an excuse.
@Sean Byrne: Well said, a voice of reason. People simply cannot afford alternative setups here, let alone in larger countries. Many are renting in any case and can’t retrofit anything. It was the same with public transport – people are supposed to manage without choices for a decade until affordable options are provided. The alternatives should be in place first.
@Sean Byrne: We’re getting a transition whether we like it or not, whether it’s just or not. The physics of how the climate works renders our economic, political and social arguments useless. We fix what we’re doing or our civilisation slowly dies.
@Mickey Finn: Absolute bull, the notion that’s put out there that we can influence the behaviour of larger industrial nations is absolute rubb1sh. Russia China India and the US do what they want always did and always will and with over 70% of the world’s carbon footprint between them the onus is on them to make big changes not us. Yes we can do things to mitigate our own circumstances but as a previous contributer said all our policies benefit the wealthy and penalise the less well off. With all Ryan’s green posturing he still allows the power guzzling data centres to be built which per capita like all you lads like to use when chastising our country increases our footprint significantly. If you want buy in for changes from the general population you need to make it fair and equitable for all and the green party only look after their own
Pointless to make life tougher here than it already is, while India, the US, China and Russia aren’t taking their foot off the pedal.
@Rob Gale: We have a chance to not make life tougher for future generations. We have to do our part and then look to put pressure on other countries that don’t do their fair share. On a per-person scale we do far more damage than residents of the countries you mentioned.
@Rob Gale: If we had more renewables life would be easier not tougher. If we invested in growing crops rather than cattle we would have more food not less.
@Nicholas McMurry: Because it is costing us more. They introduced a carbon tax to turn people away from fossil fuels, but for those living in rural settings, they have no choice but to pay it, because the Government put the cart before the horse, in that there is little infrastructure in place in terms of an EV charging network, and the little that has been put in, was done by private businesses to attract custom, and if anything, the public transport in rural areas has degraded in the the last 50 years
@Nicholas McMurry: sorry Nicholas, I was replying to your other comment concerning renewables.
@Tim Pot: Can you please share all the proof you have on this, for research purposes.
@Tim Pot: per person yes, why do you think that is?
It’s because we are probably the least densely populated country in Europe after the decimation of our population due to british rule and famine in 1800s. If we quadruple our population (roughly pro rata our population growth to track UK population growth from circa 1840 8m ire v 16m mainland uk) we won’t need that much extra roads, hospitals etc and we’d have much more scope for public transport due to population density. We’d have a lot less emissions per capita then, would that make you happy?
@Nicholas McMurry: We are the most food secure country in the world.
Won’t make a bit of difference what Ireland does.. even zero emissions as Ireland is a speck of dust on this planet compared to the emissions China, India, USA throw up every day.
@Geoff Bateman: Why stop there? Nothing anyone does anywhere makes any overall difference to anything. We’re all dead eventually anyway, so what’s the point. Earth is a speck of dust in the galaxy and it’s absence won’t be noticed by the universe.
@Mickey Finn: now you’re getting it. Once the biggest polluters start to make a big effort and commitment that is proven to effect climate change positively then we can row behind by all means as there will then be a point to it.
Democratic politics doesn’t afford politicians the ability to make choices unpopular with the majority of the voting public.
Communist politics don’t see climate change as an issue.
Taxing the B0llix out of people in Ireland for going to work is not going to make any difference to the polar bears!
Climate change will not destroy the planet , climate change will however destroy our species way of life and will be catastrophic for alot of other species that co-exist during our timeline on planet earth but evolution will continue with or without us on it , we should look at this problem in a more selfish fashion as saving ourselves from ourselves.
@John Power: the planet will be fine. It’s playing the long game. It will recover from this human virus.
@Dave Connolly: I agree, but we do need to worry what it’s like while we’re on it.
@Dave Connolly: For a while. When you consider the time passed since life begun here, it’s near retirement now. There’s supposed to be about 450-500 million useful years left based on the trends predicted for the sun (5 billion is for the sun itself). That’s time enough for life to recover from about two more mass extinction events after the current one. So, three more rolls of the dice left to create new and interesting life and that’s the end of anything happening in our local cluster until heat death in all likelihood. There’s always the multiverse I suppose.
@Mickey Finn: Simply put – there are more people on the Earth than ever before. In the last 100 years, how many bombs have been let off into the atmosphere? Banning bombs would be the first logical step and now we know extreme sanctions can be used to punish those who break that law. Climate change reeks of a “Hole in the ozone layer.” The weather in Ireland improved significantly during the lockdown. Could it possibly have something to do with almost no planes in the sky? By all means keep your country litter free but taxing the Irish people out of existence surely isn’t the answer. The Green Party wouldn’t be relevant without FG and FF. remember that! FF and FG will be using them as scapegoats come the next general election. Don’t fall for it!
@Mike Ruddy: Banning bombs, nope cant see that happening any decade soon.
Lets all live in yurts and ban cars and other vehicles, cycle or stay where you are.
Get rid of mobile phones and computers, ebikes and all they nasty battery using machines.
A simpler life, and we can have fair maidens dancing at the crossroads as well.
Scaremongering is shocking. Why not get his reports frim 20 yrs ago and see did his predictions happen as he said. Money to be made with Scaremongering the world. Remember Y2K
@Sean: Y2K? Seriously? Do you not realise that there was huge investment in fixing two-digit date systems affected by the Y2K bug so that it wouldn’t be an absolute disaster?
Follow the Science. Human-induced climate change is now indisputable except by people like yourself who just want to bury their heads in the sand. Don’t look up!
@Kevin Farrell: it’s not that science is a weak point with Sean I think, but I think he is so scared of everything, he just justifies it all as scaremongering. He used do the same during the pandemic. You are better off just ignoring him!
@Sean: Science changes as discovered facts change. It’s a pity that right wing ideology cannot change with the facts and wants to pretend it’s a religion opposing the “woke” demons!!
@Joe_X: i was right about cv19, Finland proved with their weak restrictions and had very few deaths, incompetence by Tony and his team caused many unnecessary deaths, just a taste if his incompetence, irish people would not wear masks correctly so no point using them. Old folks homes left to the slaughter, restrictions lifted but don’t bring in compulsive 2 weeks under quarantine in dec 2020.
@mmz: the “science” was based on “facts” 20 years ago too tbf. I guess they can always say it was only 50/50 when it doesn’t work out as predicted.
@Sean: Actually, you are etill wrong!
First of all, Finland and Norway had restrictions comparable to our own. It is Sweden you mean who brought in no restrictions.
Secondly, you cannot compare Sweden to us as they are different on so many levels to us. Climate, population densities, social attitudes to name a few.The best comparison to Sweden are Norway and Finland and those 2 countries prior to the introduction of vaccines had deaths counted in the 10s while Swedens were in the thousands
And all we were constantly hearing from you was it is all scaremongering….just like now. You really that scared that it is the only way you can get up? Tell yourself everybody else is wrong and it is all scaremongering ?
@Joe_X: incorrect Finland did not, my brother lives there and it was less less than 20% of ours. We kept reporting who died with cv19 rathar than who died due to cv19. CSO figures back this up, 6k people did not died due to.cv19 more like 50% of that.
@Sean: Sean, your fantasy world is getting worse and worse, first of of all, all throughout the pandemic, not once did you mention your imaginary Finnish brother. Secondly,I have often mentioned what I do for a living, and my industry, though world wide is quite small. I know guys in my trade all over the world, including 2 in Finland. They had restrictions, along with Norway. Sweden did not. All things considered, Sweden did a cull by not bringing in restrictions. You are getting away from the original issue….everything with you is scaremongering you need to open your eyes and cop on.
We are being asked to switch to electric Heat Pumps and EVs.We have one of the highest prices for electricity and standing charges.
If you can’t charge your EV at home you have to pay 4 times the night rate charge at a street or garage charger.
@Roger Bond: The public infrastructure for charging EVs does not exist in rural areas, and the only ones you will find in rural areas are those privatly installed by garages and shops to attract custom. This restricts people who live in rural areas to ICE vehicles and no choice but to pay the carbon tax.
There is no climate emergency. Climate change began about 4,500,000,000 million years ago. In 1999, VP AL GORE warned that the Polar ice caps would have melted completely by 2013. He made an absolute fortune out of that one.
@Mike Walsh: A decade right or wrong, they are still melting at unprecedented rates with summer arctic temperatures of 38 degrees.
@Mike Walsh: Mike, are you simple? Do we need to get you help. The only place you are a teacher is in your own mind.
@mmz: they’re not though.
We are about as significant as a pimple on the rump of a fly in the whole global warming discussion. We contributed 0.001% of greenhouse gasses. But the Greens and minister Ryan want the ordinary people of Ireland to pay more than any other EU citizens in taxes& levies. We are paying enough for these incompetent politicians. Enough is Enough!
Why can’t the rural farmers that have hectares of bogland claim carbon credits for the carbon it sequesters as well as the carbon their hedge grows and grassland sequesters.
Every MNC in Ireland can their buying up forestry and bogland in Leitrim and offsetting data centre emmisions against the carbon this land is sequestering.
Why is the small rural 200 hill sheep farmer not aloud too – they want to rob the credits off rural land owners and give them to MNC so the FDI keeps flowing
I believe its time for our carbon footprints to be put on the table regarding aviation and pollution which is “hush hush” atm. Maybe we should all ground ourselves to less distance in choosing our vacations. Over 300 planes pass over our county every day. Surely that has an effect when it comes to measuring the air quality. Also regarding cattle and excess carbon created maybe we should all cut down on our beef consumption.
@C_O’S: They travel over us as we are on the edge of Europe abd that is where they are heading. So no more travel for you. And Butlins is gone now, sad. It was a great holiday too.
So now that the war in Ukraine is becoming a bit of an old news item, are we returning to 2-3 pieces on climate change per day?
Lots of climate promises, but “we can’t do anything that would INCONVENIENCE PEOPLE”. Please see turf, speed limits, big cars, flight taxes, carbon taxes.
At current trends, we’re going to be so inconvenienced by 2040 it’s hard to comprehend.
@Shane Lynn: Making a decision between turning in the heat or heating is more than an inconvenience.
Unfortunately the model we are fed is to get money however you can until the place is destroyed. Wont change.
Think our emissions has about 0.000001% impact on climate change on our wonderful planet, our sun which sits 93million miles away is heating up & has been for millions of years & nothing & I mean nothing will stop that, yes im all on for environmental friendly & recycling & all that’s good for the environment but a scientific fact is nothing will stop our sun from doing what it’s doing….. no green party not even a fully electrified grid will stop the sun….. climate change is just an excuse for more taxes
And there’s me thinking paying all that carbon tax put upon us was enough!
Most people in the world don’t know where Ireland is or what it is especially the Chinese
Get China and India on board first.
Ireland has NO effect.
I used to worry a lot about this, diligently recycled all my life, walk, cycle & use public transport, and still do, but I don’t worry too much about it any more… people always have and always will only do the least they can get away with right up to the very last minute, but then we’ll pull out all the stops to douse the flames before the house burns down around us… the author needs to have more faith in our ability to procrastinate up to just the right moment, then watch what the frantic spirit of desperate human endeavour can achieve!
@Esper Anto: Any examples to support that?
@Esper Anto: Borrocks!
@Mickey Finn: What examples did the writer of this piece give. He gave snapshot in time temperatures which have occurred over the centuries before and will happen again. If the summer temperature is 10 degrees below normal in canada this summer it will be put down to weather if its 10 degrees above its climate change. This normally chilly Canada rubbish Canada has much warmer summers than Ireland always and much colder winters because it has a continental climate which isn’t affected by sea temperatures. The above is an opinion piece written by a journalist and activist not a scientist
Close the data centres then il make changes
The writer must be related to the minister of lettuce in the windows to write a piece like this lord help us
Pure conjecture: “The only thing that can now prevent the climate system from breaching a tipping point into irreversible global collapse is urgent action by governments around the world to reduce emissions.” How about backing this bold statement up with some facts?
This comment section is depressingly predictable. Science deniers and right wingers everywhere.
@AuroraStarstreak: A lot of people disagree with the policies being stuffed down our throats with the condescending attitude it is being done.
Utter bs
John Gibbons pity you don’t concentrate on what China,America or Russia are doing about Climate Change,in Ireland we are being screwed and for what we are a insignificant country in the scheme of things,but in Ireland we are very politically correct
Renewables would be universally embraced the world over except we choose to monetise a free product as a commodity. If your unit rate was 3c to the end user we’d be jumping for joy, however you are paying for wind to produce energy in you levy and the unit rate is pure greed. You pay for it and pay for them to produce it.
So if you want to embrace it it has to be a whole hog appraoch, wind to generation and hydro storage and the unit rate is cost price to the public. cost of maintenance, service provision ,billing etc but not sold as a commodity, it wouldn’t rise or fall. Other countries would likely be forced to follow.
@Albert Brennerman: fully agree. Electricity is life and should be state owned only. There should not be a profit made from it no more than there should be from water. If we were reinvesting money made from Electricity savings in this country instead of the money being siphoned off to other countries it would make even more sense to switch to electric cars and electric heating.
What can be done only science will work on radio listened to guy who wanted to populate Ireland with his own diaspora.
Sadly, the entire world SHOULD have taken climate change seriously no later than the 1970′s… it’s been known about since the EARLY 20th century, and to date nearly nothing has been done.
Another regurgitated press release from John Gibbons, John, take some time out and have a look at this, nothing new under the sun, pun intended.
https://rumble.com/embed/v10s7h6/?pub=4
There is no climate crisis,
http://www.clintel.org
Looks like coastal erosion on a grand scale is on the way,as sea rises occurs.One wonders if Dublin,Cork.Limerick will get resources to tackle this issue with everywhere else getting nothing.
@Peter Cuthbert: Correct the country should be called “Dublin” not Ireland
@Peter Cuthbert: Your right the government will save the cities and the rest of the country will drown. Give it a break,
We need to get things in perspective here..while personally I absolutely believe everyone should be doing their bit for climate change.. but in the end of the day we are only about the same size as Manchester ! There are villages in China bigger than us. Ireland surely has little or no impact on the overall outcome of climate change.
It’s good to know that the whole world will blame Ireland, if the climate doesn’t improve. Really???
Ireland alone won’t save so much as a butterfly. To have any hope of arresting the trend we need the top polluters to take the problem seriously. Meanwhile, we might save two butterflies if we club together with 10-20 nations of similar size.
I do want clean air. Smoke from solid fuel fires, and diesel and kerosene fumes give me asthma attacks. But I’m not going to fool myself by thinking Ireland can save the world.
have your say