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Where’s Robin Hood now? Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohamad blasts UK’s palm oil hypocrisy
- European biofuel competitors ‘invented’ claims that the industry adversely affects ecosystem, the Malaysian prime minister says in Cambridge speech
- He mocks the UK’s own deforestation, asking about Robin Hood
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Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has defended the palm oil industry, accusing Western countries of double standards on the environment.
European competitors had “invented” the idea that the palm oil industry adversely affected the ecosystem, Mahathir, 93, told the Cambridge Union in Britain on Sunday.
He said biofuel competitors from Europe and elsewhere had made up the claims out of jealousy because palm oil was the cheapest and most versatile edible vegetable oil.
In a speech marked with humour and wit, Mahathir took aim at “hypocritical” European countries, including Britain, who had “cleared” so much forest there were now “no wild animals” left.
“When you start talking about the environment and clearing forests, look at Britain for example. Where are your wood forests? Are they still there? Is Robin Hood still operating from there?” he said, prompting much laughter and applause.
He defended the industry as vital to the livelihoods of many Malaysians, saying it enabled them to “compete with the rest of the world”.
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