Tuesday, 27 May, 2008
- 27 May 08, 05:11 PM
From tonight's presenter, :
Are green taxes dead?
Are green taxes a luxury we can no longer afford? In the face of an economic downturn, should society be ditching the green agenda or sticking with it?
Lines of lorries are clogging the country's main arteries today in protest over the rising cost of fuel, their drivers demanding the government scrap the planned 2p rise in fuel tax.
At the same time the Chancellor Alistair Darling is facing the fury of Labour MPs over his plans to increase road taxes on older, more polluting vehicles. He'll be addressing their concerns in a meeting next week.
With the cost of fuel, travel and food rising - and house prices falling - people are feeling a big squeeze. So, should the government ease the pain in the short-term by scrapping the green agenda, or is it more important to protect the planet for our grandchildren?
PTSD
We have an exclusive and deeply disturbing report from Afghanistan about the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder among troops and the US military's efforts to deal with this rapidly growing problem.
Since the war on terror began 60,000 US troops have received an initial diagnosis of PTSD, and the US is waking up to the fact that the level of the illness amongst returning veterans is becoming a social ill. Two hundred murders have been committed by veterans - and most victims are their own family members. Newsnight has been given exclusive access to the taskforces now on the frontline trying to prevent post-traumatic stress disorder.
MPs' expenses
Did Tony Blair display some fancy footwork over his expenses? Following a High Court ruling that MPs' Additional Costs Allowance - in other words, expenses for second homes - would not be exempted from FOI requirements, some receipts and invoices are causing a stir.
Have we a right to know exactly what MPs are spending - or should they get a 拢23,000 lump sum for the second home and spend it any way they want, as is expected to be recommended by a Commons committee?
Pollack playback
And we'll be revisiting some of Sydney Pollack's finest moments. The director, actor, and producer has died at the age of 73, leaving behind a string of great films - among them, They Shoot Horses Don't They?, Tootsie, The Electric Horseman, Three Days of the Condor and Out of Africa - which took seven Oscars in all.
His most recent big screen appearance was in Michael Clayton opposite George Clooney, but on occasion he made appearances in popular TV shows, from Will and Grace to The Sopranos.
