The U.K. House of Commons Science and Technology Committeee investigating allegations that scientists at the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Unit headed by Prof. Phil Jones misrepresented data related to global warming announced on March 31 that it had found no evidence to support that charge. The committeee’s report emphasized that nothing in the more than 1,000 e-mail messages stolen from climate scientists or in the ensuing controversy challenge the scientific consensus that “global warming is happening and that it is induced by human activity.” While exonerating Phil Jones and his colleagues of charges that have been levelled by a vitriolic climate change contrarian and denialist campaign, the committee criticized what it called a “culture of withholding information” about data and methodologies and called for greater transparency. It did not address the problem of what to do about those who have harassed and burdened climate scientists with dubious freedom of information requests, while themselves contributing precious little to the peer-reviewed scientific literature.
Full text of the report: House of Commons, Science and Technology Committee, The Disclosure of climate data from the Climatic Research Unity at the University of East Anglia
Associated Press: U.K. Panel Calls Climate Data Valid
DeSmogBlog: Phil Jones Exonerated by British House of Commons
Climate Progress: House of Commons exonerates Phil Jones
London Guardian: Climate researchers ‘secrecy’ criticised – but MPs say science remains intact
Earlier CSW posts:
March 10: Michael Mann interview: Denialists are waging “asymmetric warfare” against climate science
December 1, 2009: Ben Santer: Open letter to the climate science community
October 13, 2009: Phil Jones and Ben Santer respond to CEI and Pat Michaels attack on temperature data record