All consumption of lamb and beef will stop in 2050. The North Sea oil and gas industry will be shut down. UK airports will be closed, with only Heathrow, Glasgow and Belfast operating by 2030. There will be no flying, with travellers relying on electrified rail services. Shipping? It will have to go through “rapid contraction” too.

Sound like an apocalyptic scenario dreamed up by crazed environmentalists to be immediately filed under the “unworkable” category?

Well, think again — because this is an ultra-serious research paper developed by the UK’s top engineering scholars.