by Sunny Hundal

The Daily Telegraph has a long reputation as a paper of repute.

These days however its opinion columns are full of people from the tinfoil-hat-wearing nutjob fringe.

James Delingpole is one common example. Delingpole is published not because he has anything new or interesting to say, or because he posseses intimate knowledge of the topic he writes about (even by his own admission) – but because he appeals so well to climate-change-deniers.

On Monday he was in the Telegraph explaining why he’s standing as an independent candidate in the Corby by-election.

He is a single-issue candidate, summing up his position as: “I believe that wind farms are a cancer: one of the worst crimes ever perpetrated against the country by Westminster.”

He then goes on to say:

The wind industry is so wrong in every way that to be against it ought to be no more contentious than being against paedophilia.

That’s not him joking around – that is exactly what he wants.

And this is a guy the BBC happily invite on and regularly interview as a serious commentator.