Cameron scores poorly on Environment

David Cameron's Conservatives do not score well on environment policy

A new report into the green policies of the major parties makes grim reading for David Cameron.

Mr Cameron's Conservatives were judged to be the worst of the parties on the environment.

Mr Brown's Labour Party were shown to have missed their own targets on carbon emissions and renewables.

There was good news for Nick Clegg and the Liberal Democrats. Mr Clegg's party were the clear green winners in the report.

The 'Green Standard' report was conducted by the UK's leading environmental groups including CPRE, Friends of the Earth and the RSPB.

It found that despite talking more about climate change, the Conservatives have "very few policy positions".

The Conservatives failed to win a single good rating on any of the report's criteria.

Lib Dem campaigner Nigel Quinton said, "This independent report shows that talking green and being green are two very different things."

"Both Labour and the Conservatives talk about the environment, but are failing to deliver real action."

Tackling climate change

The Issue in Brief

Climate change is a major threat to our planet - and urgent action is needed now. The Liberal

Democrats are the only party to grasp the challenge of tackling climate change. The Government

has published a Climate Change Bill which was introduced in the House of Lords on 14th

November 2007. The Climate Change Bill is a step in the right direction. In setting up a climate

change committee of experts to assess our progress, it provides a framework for our efforts to

curb our carbon emissions in the long road to decarbonising the UK economy. However, the bill is

not yet strong enough if it is to help us tackle the greatest challenge of our age.

On climate change, the report said that the Liberal Democrat plans were "uniquely consistent with the urgency of this challenge."

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg MP said, "We need bold action to tackle climate change."

Here in Welwyn Hatfield we take the environment seriously. The Libdems have held collections for plastics recycling in Welwyn Garden City for years, even when the Tories refused to provide facilities in our district. Following pressure from the Libdems and others they finally buckled and have now provided collection facilities for recycling plastics in the area.

Says Activist Nigel Quinton:

"My view is that the borough council still has to learn to engage with the debate over recycling. Currently we only recycle 28% of our domestic waste - half of which is garden waste, so as a percentage of normal domestic waste the number is very low indeed.

"In contrast, councils elsewhere are able to achieve figures in excess of 50%."

Eastleigh in Hampshire has a good reputation for its recycling schemes. They provide residents with two bins, one for recyclable and one for non-recyclable waste, with larger bins for larger households. They also operate a brown bin garden waste service and a glass collection service and a host of other schemes to encourage recycling. So why can't more be done here?

See what Eastleigh offers to collect from its residents.

And what Bristol is doing...

LibDems make breakthrough on climate change action

Nottingham Declaration - about climate change.

Climate change is the biggest threat to our planet. It needs action at international, national and local level. Councils can sign the Nottingham Declaration (named after Nottingham council who started the scheme 5 years ago). It commits the council not only to take action over its own behaviour, but to take a lead in its community in reducing the carbon emissions of the area. Over 130 councils in England have signed up.

LibDems have been at the forefront - and all 3 LibDem councils in Herts - Watford, St Albans and Three Rivers - have signed up.

Liberal Democrat councillors Nigel Quinton and Malcolm Cowan asked Welwyn Hatfield and Herts County Council to sign up, and they have both agreed.

'Now we aim to complete the map by getting our local councillors in the other districts to ask all the remaining councils to sign up' said Malcolm. It is a pity it has taken 5 years to get this far - we must press ahead.

Your shout on Climate Change

Climate change forum.

Peers press for a stronger Climate Change Bill Tue, 11 Mar 2008

Liberal Democrat Lords have been pushing to increase the strength of the Climate Change Bill, including bringing aviation and shipping into the scope of the Bill.

Baroness Northover highlighted the need for poverty to be taken into account when looking at the international context of climate change.

Baroness Northover explained the reasons for her amendment to consider the effects of climate change, and measures to tackle it, on the poorest people of the world:

"The amendment seeks to make explicit that when the Secretary of State and the climate change committee are looking at the international context, they must consider the impact of their actions on the poorest people in the poorest countries. As we know, climate change will affect those living at the margins first and foremost. That is one of the main reasons why action is so urgent. We already see the impact on fragile countries, and it is disproportionately far greater than in the United Kingdom, which so far has been relatively well cushioned."

Summarising at the end of the debate, Baroness Northover explained how climate change issues cannot be ring fenced but said, "We are likely to return to this issue later in the Bill, but in the mean time, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment."

The amendment was withdrawn