Green policy: We need a seismic shift in thinking

Andy Atkins

The massive disruption to European air travel from the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland is a stark reminder of the massive force of nature – and the powerlessness of our actions when we feel its full might.

It’s a timely reminder of the urgent need to heed warnings from the world’s leading climate scientists about the huge threat we face unless we slash greenhouse gas emissions and tackle global warming.

But despite widespread agreement among the main political parties that climate change is one of the biggest challenges we face, the issue has taken a back seat since Gordon Brown blew the general election whistle earlier this month.

Before the economic crisis took hold, all the main parties seemed to grasp the importance of making climate change a major issue.

David Cameron kicked off his party leadership by making the environment a leading priority, urging people to “vote blue, go green” in the runup to the 2006 council elections.

Nick Clegg told a 2008 climate rally that some were saying: “In a recession we can’t afford the luxury to worry about the planet … they are wrong, you are right.”

And at last year’s Copenhagen climate talks, Gordon Brown warned of the “economic catastrophe equivalent in this century to the impact of two world wars and the great depression in the last.”

Cross-party support in the last parliament led to the passing of the historic Climate Change Act. Championed by Friends of the Earth, this was the first national legislation anywhere in the world to set legally binding targets for cutting emissions.

All three parties have sizeable sections devoted to the environment in their manifestos, and these are certainly stronger and bolder than last time round. But none of them fully grasps the size of the environmental challenge we face.

There is little to choose between Labour and Conservative electoral pledges.

Perhaps most deplorable is the fact that neither includes a commitment to delivering the 42% reduction in greenhouse gases that the government’s key advisors – the committee on climate change – say is required by 2020. Labour hinted at it, but only if various international conditions are met, while the Conservatives don’t even have a 2020 target.

Labour are strong on making our homes more energy efficient, promising to improve 7 million homes through tougher standards for rented housing and a loans scheme for homeowners, with the aim that all lofts and cavity walls will be insulated by 2015. However, these laudable intentions are undermined by promises to widen motorways and build more runways.

A lack of detail permeates Conservative plans. How much money will its Green Investment Bank have? How big an impact will green government procurement plans have on the markets for eco products? And what emission standards will be set for new power stations? The promise to scrap airport expansion plans is welcome.

The Liberal Democrats have been most impressive – second only to the Green Party – in putting green issues at the heart of their policy proposals by including them on most pages and in every section of their manifesto.

The next UK parliament will be critical if the UK is to play its part in reducing emissions and seizing the enormous economic opportunities of developing a low-carbon future, which could deliver hundreds of thousands of new green jobs and business opportunities.

Strong leadership will be required from whichever party wins the election to ensure that the UK plays a fair role in tackling global warming. And this will be so much easier if they are supported by the other parties too. Climate change is too important to be a political football.

The starting point for the next government must be a far stronger target for cutting UK emissions – without buying carbon offsets from abroad.

Local carbon budgets should also be introduced for every local council. They have a crucial role to play in meeting our climate goals. And we need a new law to tackle the significant greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation caused by the UK’s dependence on imported feeds for livestock – which will also support better UK farming and domestic feed production.

And the next UK government must also play a prominent role in pushing for a strong and fair international agreement on cutting emissions where those responsible make the deepest cuts first, and developing countries are supported to grow in a clean, green way.

Aviation emissions have been reduced by the Icelandic volcano , but it’s also brought chaos, misery and frustration to tens of thousands of people. Cutting emissions and tackling climate change is essential – but this must be achieved through bold strategies, not volcanic activity.

It’s a seismic shift in political thinking that we desperately need.

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