The United Kingdom's Met Office chief, John Hirst, has revealed that he has received death threats from climate change sceptics
The United Kingdom's Met Office chief, John Hirst, has revealed that he has received death threats from climate change sceptics.
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Hirst disclosed the threats while talking about the problems faced by television scientist and climate change sceptic Johnny Ball, who revealed in February that he had been the subject of a hate campaign.
"I wrote to Johnny Ball because he had received death threats and it might not surprise you that I get some death threats as well," the Telegraph quoted Hirst, as saying.
"So, I wrote to him and said: 'I get death threats too, it's crazy. Why don't we talk, because if we can take some of this small 'p' politics out of this conversation we might do a service to the world'."
"He might have a different point of view from me, his point of view might be valid, but only by talking about stuff in a calm and sensible way will we be able to take the politics out," he added.
The Met Office had faced criticism over the "barbecue summer" furore and the "Climategate" controversy in 2009.
Meanwhile, a Met Office spokesman confirmed that Hirst had received death threats made in a number of "unsavoury emails", but insisted that they were "isolated incidents".
"Emotions can run high at both ends of the climate change debate. It is not confined to the Met Office. Around the time of Climategate there were many instances of people involved getting unsavoury emails," the spokesman said.
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