This debate organised by Friends of the Earth was held today at the Dormer Place Conference Centre. Chris White, MP, said that the government simply had to be the greenest ever given the threat of climate change. Matthew Rhodes, director of Encraft, felt the government was trying to be green, but currently going backwards as the Green Investment Bank would have too little money and that low carbon activities must be seen as our economic future. David Powell, Friends of the Earth, also gave the government a mixed verdict: great abandoned the third runway at Heathrow and are introducing the Green Deal; but there are massive funding cuts for Green institutions, warm front funding has been abolished and councils need a bigger role in making the Energy Bill succeed.
My view? Some hesitant steps in the right direction, but far too slow, and not even addressing the fundamental issues; David Powell summed it up as a need for transformational change… but what this might be wasn’t even hinted at!
