Following this morning’s cabinet reshuffle by Gordon Brown it has been announced that Ed Miliband will take the reigns of a newly created UK government department as the new ‘Minister for Energy and Climate Change’. This will combine the energy responsibilities of the business department and the climate focus previously held by DEFRA.

With any luck, the appointment of an economist and treasury veteran to this key role might herald a turning point in governmental management of the ‘Climergy’ space. We need to move from an administration paralysed by indecision, amidst a sea of Climate Change rhetoric and posturing, to pragmatic implementation of sustainable policies which can secure support from pressure groups, the business community AND the voting public.

Operationally a huge amount of progress has already been made, but no one has yet figured out how to simply and clearly explain the results of all this to Joe Bloggs on street. The task here is all about communication with real people. Every conceivable objection to Cap and Trade as an effective tool in our armory to fight Climate Change has been rebutted time and again. It is, nevertheless, astonishing how often sloppy journalists in this sector begin yet another article with the ‘Climate Change Controversy’, ‘The continuing Carbon Offset debate’ or other equally tired one-liners. Only once this problem is solved will the politicians be able to get back to the real job in hand; that of implementing sustainable change.

Interestingly, the usually rather staid and hawkishly titled ‘Environmental Defense Action Fund‘ in Washington DC seem to be much more ‘right-on’ than us Brits with their efforts to persuade the US taxpayer of the merits of Cap and Trade. They have launched a public competition offering a $10,000 cash prize to the bright spark who can explain most concisely how a Carbon Cap will solve America’s Oil addiction. Might not be a bad example to follow Ed …