LibDems and Tories say normal politics is not delivering on climate change
Sat 10 December 2005
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In an unusual development, the UK's two main opposition parties have joined forces to call for a cross-party agreement on action to curb climate change emissions. The LibDem and Conservative environment spokesmen want year-on-year carbon reduction targets to be set.
Shadow environment spokesmen Norman Baker (LibDem) and Oliver Letwin (Conservatives) said in a letter to the Independent newspaper: "Normal politics is simply not delivering the sort of action we need to take as a nation...The grave threat to us all that climate change poses requires a new and more urgent political response".
The spokesmen are jointly calling for compulsory annual cuts in greenhouse gas emissions with an independent body established to monitor progress.
They say that action is increasingly urgent as the latest scientific evidence confirms that climate change is not only occurring, but is kicking in at a rate even worse than scientists previously thought.
All three main UK political parties accept the scientific consensus on climate change and support the Kyoto process. Baker and Letwin acknowledge that while there are legitimate policy differences - such as on nuclear power - there are also many agreed positions such as the need to invest in energy efficiency.
Margaret Beckett, the Environment Secretary, responded to the joint suggestion with caution: "The Conservative positions on a number of key issues, their leadership election, and your own ongoing review of all Liberal Democrat policy means that this would not be an easy discussion," she said.
Related Links
Baker/Letwin letter to Independent
Independent article
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