Daily Telegraph columnist and environment reporter Geoffrey Lean says he has been “pushed out” after a 46-year career in newspaper journalism.

Lean has written about his departure in a blog warning that rejection of the seriousness of climate change is growing on the comment pages of newspapers while retreating elsewhere.

He said: “I still think print is better than electronic media. It can broaden minds, while the internet tends to narrow them. People usually look online for things that already interest them, and for views that they already hold, reinforcing prejudices. Newspapers, at their best, surprise you as you turn their pages, catching your eye with – and tempting you to read about – new subjects and differing opinions.