UK Defence Startups Are Being Denied Banking Services Under ESG Rules

AI misinformation and slop - should be moderated and not top of HN

What a weird response.

>Eyebrook is far from the only defence company to be debanked

Something is really, really wrong in Europe. There will be books written about this in the future.

For example, "if China were secretly conspiring to sabotage the US, they would goad the US into a war with Iran".

Anyway, as far as Europe's self-sabotage goes, I don't think China has much to do with it. The US however does. Trump browbeating NATO countries to spend 5% of GDP on defense is both a gift to US weapons manufacturers and a foil to dismantle the social welfare states in Europe. Because of different versions of austerity, those defense dollars come directly at the expensive of the social safety net and the tenets of European social democracy. I really don't think that's an accident either.

It's also true that Europe has been asleep at the wheel, perfectly happy to outsource their defense to the US. I am skeptical that the political will exists to replace foreign military hardware with homegrown industries but I believe that Europe needs to be responsible for its own security if it's to survive long term.

Violating the E (Environment) should lead to fines to make up for environmental clean up. If severe enough there should be prison time for the responsible higher ups.

Drop the S and G. There are existing laws to for most of these.

Governments can use weapons embargoes to stop their defense contractors from selling to specific countries.

In cars, real estate, then into private helicopters and airplanes. In that order. In eastern Poland light airplanes and helicopters are flying as if the region was some Arab petroleum state. The Dutch can conceal it from peasants much easier in their overseas territories.