Plus, guess who’s coming to Reform UK’s annual conference?...

From the Editor’s Desk

Between the ongoing war in Iran and President Trump’s environmental deregulation, oil executives have made a killing this year while cash-strapped workers grapple with eye-popping prices at the gas pump.

But there’s one particularly galling example in Canada. Did you know the personal stock holdings of just three Canadian oil executives ballooned by more than $1 billion from January 1 to August 21, 2026?

As Canadians struggle with ever-higher energy costs, Mitch Anderson reports [[link removed]]that the executive chairman of oil and gas giant Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. saw the value of his stock soar from $1.9 billion at the end of 2025 to $3 billion in August.

Mitch dug into financial and disclosure documents to uncover the enormous windfalls flowing to corporate leaders at Canada’s largest oil sands companies, including Suncor and Imperial Oil.

“It is unconscionable that the petroleum industry and its insiders are profiting so mightily from yet another oil shock, even as thousands die in the Middle East and millions in Canada see their living standards further eroded by oil-fueled inflation,” an economist from the Centre for Future Work told DeSmog.

Dive into the full story here. [[link removed]]

Meanwhile, our UK team has been hot on the trail of Reform Party leader Nigel Farage, his financial antics and his self-touted relationship with Trump.

Today marks the launch of Reform’s annual conference — and guess who Farage has invited to his three-day jamboree? Sam Bright writes that representatives from Google, Meta and TikTok [[link removed]] will rub shoulders with Christian conservative groups and fossil fuel leaders.

Reform, whose senior figures frequently deny climate science, wants to dramatically expand fossil fuel production in the UK. So it’s no surprise that the conference’s first day features an event on the “price of power” with Reform deputy leader Richard Tice [[link removed]].

Like Farage, Tice is a vocal climate science denier who recently said we should “celebrate” this summer’s sky-high temperatures — despite the global heat waves and destructive wildfires they caused.

Get Sam’s full story here. [[link removed]]

In last week’s newsletter we told you about Sam’s story, co-written with Olly Haynes [[link removed]], on Trump’s Commerce Secretary promoting the business interests of Farage’s main donor, Christopher Harborne. Novara Media, a UK news outlet, was so intrigued by the reporting that they invited Sam on their show to share “The TRUTH About Nigel Farage’s Dodgy Crypto Millions,” as they named the segment.

Check it out here [[link removed]].

Still looking to know more about these issues? Let us know what you’d still like answered: Email us at [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] m [mailto:[email protected]]. Looking for more in-depth UK coverage? Sign up for our UK newsletter [[link removed]].

Thanks as always,

Geoff Dembicki

Global Managing Editor

P.S. DeSmog reporters and researchers shine a light on disinformation and abuses of power. Will you take 60 seconds right now to support more of our work? [[link removed]]

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Image: President Donald Trump and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage at CPAC in 2018. Credit: Shealah Craighead / White House (Public domain)

5of7 Via Wikimedia Commons [[link removed]] (CC BY-SA 2.0), Jason Woodhead via Wikimedia Commons [“[link removed]] (CC BY 2.0) [“[link removed]”]" width="600" src="[link removed]"> [“[link removed]”] Canadian Oil Executives’ Stock Holdings Increased by Over $1 Billion Amid War and Wildfires [[link removed]]— By Mitch Anderson (5 min. read) —

Executives at Canadian Natural Resources Limited, Suncor, and Imperial Oil saw their personal stock holdings and options skyrocket this year, according to a DeSmog analysis.

READ MORE [[link removed]] Oil Lobbyists, Anti-Abortion Groups, and Tech Giants Flock to Reform Conference [[link removed]]— By Sam Bright (8 min. read) —

Nigel Farage’s party is welcoming polluting interests and radical pressure groups to its annual gathering.

READ MORE [[link removed]]

MORE ON NIGEL FARAGE

Nigel Farage Dubbed ‘MP for Washington’ for Parroting Trump in Parliament [[link removed]]

— By Adam Barnett (5 min. read) —

Reform leader boosted the president’s attacks on UK Chagos Islands policy more often than raising the cost of living.

READ MORE [[link removed]]

HIGHLIGHTS FROM INSIDE MAGA’s GLOBAL CLIMATE AGENDA

Heartland Institute Podcast Questions Whether All Americans ‘Should Have the Right to Vote’ [[link removed]]

— Rei Takver (6 min. read) —

A couple days later, the Trump-linked group hosted EPA chief — and potential attorney general — Lee Zeldin at a Washington, D.C. event.

READ MORE [[link removed]]

OpenAI Draws Fire for Employee’s Remarks at Pro-Trump CPAC GB Event [[link removed]]

— By Adam Barnett (6 min. read) —

A member of staff at the firm advocated for AI deregulation at the Reform-linked conference.

READ MORE [[link removed]] From the Climate Disinformation Database: Richard Tic [[link removed]]e

Richard Tice is a multi-millionaire property developer, financier, deputy chairman and MP for Reform UK, and a vocal denier of climate science. Tice is also a presenter for TalkTV, a right-leaning media channel owned by Rupert Murdoch, where he has used his timeslot to interview climate deniers including Brian Catt. In an interview on Sky News, Tice called evidence from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report showing that it is “unequivocal” that climate change is man-made “absolute garbage.” He said: “The arrogant naivete of people who think you can stop the power of the sun, stop the power of volcanoes. There’s no evidence that man-made CO2 is going to change climate change. Given that it’s gone on for millions of years, it will go on for millions of years.” However this is false. The IPCC, the world’s foremost climate science body, has stated that it is “unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land.” In an appearance on news program BBC Breakfast, Tice also claimed that net zero policies would make no difference to sea level rise driven by climate change, and implied that volcanoes and the sun were responsible for atmospheric warming. [[link removed]]

Read the full profile [[link removed]] and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database [[link removed]], Ad & PR Database [[link removed]], and Koch Network Database [[link removed]].

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