Managing change is quite a challenge because there’s a natural and understandable resistance, and even a mistrust of the reasoning, as it begins.

This was certainly my experience when the Council changed from collecting full plastic bin bags from the dustbins at the back of houses to expecting home owners to push out a wheeled bin container to the kerbside.

The debate was fierce, with concerns that the bins would be too heavy. There were even suggestions that it amounted to forced labour, and burglars might stand on them. On the plus side it meant less litter on the streets from bags ripped open by animals, and the possibility of much more recycling. In time, people adjusted and accepted the benefits, and it’s now likely that if the bins were removed there would be an outcry.

There are many other examples of intense debate followed by a slow acceptance of the change and a final recognition that the new state of affairs is a real improvement and very desirable. The restrictions on smoking come to mind.

This delay in adjusting behaviour is particularly important as we face up to the challenges posed by the way we are disturbing the climate, especially if the aim is to reduce the amount of energy used and so the emissions of carbon dioxide. In short, there’s still a surprising amount of fuss about light bulbs.

I can just about recall the old gas mantles that were used for lighting – and still are in the Beehive pub in Westgate, Bradford – but even I can’t honestly say that I went up to bed carrying a candle. Thankfully, there was considerable satisfaction with the development of incandescent light bulbs – they lit at the flick of a switch, gave a warm level of light and the big ones could be very bright, and all at a reasonable price.

The fact that they were remarkably inefficient, with 90 per cent of the electricity used producing heat and just ten per cent producuing light, seemed irrelevant, but as most power stations still produce CO2, the fewer used the better. Because of this, such bulbs have been banned in many countries, including China, and now the phased-in EU restriction is causing an upset.

One national newspaper is supporting a campaign to get round what it calls a “ridiculous” ban and the “forced” use of compact fluorescent and LED lights in domestic settings. As it’s still possible to purchase ‘rough service’ incandescent lamps, manufactured for industrial premises, the paper favours their production and domestic use.

Such resistance to change is just another example of why we are finding it so difficult to reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere.