Branson Says `Unbelievably Painful' Recession Ahead Without Clean Energy - Bloomberg

British billionaire Richard Branson predicted an “unbelievably painful” recession if the world doesn’t move more quickly to a clean-energy economy.

“We are going to have the mother of all recessions if we don’t sort out our energy policy fast,” Branson said today at a conference in Cancun, Mexico, where United Nations-led negotiations for a new climate change treaty are taking place.

Oil prices as high as $200 a barrel and lack of government measures to encourage low-emissions energy sources, unemployment in the U.S. could reach 15 percent in five years “without any difficulty,” he said.