Archived press release

FOE director challenges lib-dems

15 March 1996

In his address to the special Environment Rally which opens the Liberal-Democrats' Spring Party Conference tonight, Friday 15 March, Charles Secrett, Director of Friends of the Earth, included the following:

1) Warning the Party not to become complacent, he said:

"Of the three major political parties in Britain, the Liberal-Democrat Party has traditionally had the strongest environmental manifesto and clearest commitments to improving Britain's often dismal environmental performance. That commitment has been evident nationally, and in many local authorities where Liberal Democrats hold power. It is a track record to be proud of, and is widely applauded by,independent organisations like Friends of the Earth.

But, do not be complacent. You cannot take anything for granted. Where once those environmental priorities obviously distinguished the Party from its main competitors, there is no longer such a distance. The Labour Party is begining to catch up quickly. In Parliament and in the country at large, Labour is at long last emphasising its own strong environmental policies. Mr Blair's recent speech is the latest indication of this trend."

2) Commenting on the Newbury by-pass, he said:

"Be confident. Continue to practice what you preach. Use every opportunity in Parliament and Town Halls to demonstrate that Liberal-Democrats will take the initiative in creating an environmentally sustainable society, where environmental protection, resource conservation, social justice and economic prosperity go hand-in-hand.

If you do this, we can all help ensure that debacles like Newbury never happen again. And that must be as important for you as a Party with a proud environmental record, as it is for us as environmentalists. Why have the Liberal-Democrats championed this controversial, and likely useless, road scheme - and done the Department of Transport's dirty work for them? Given the destruction the road will bring, why have you risked your environmental credibility - instead of championing the quicker, cheaper and effective alternatives? Alternatives which support current environmental and transport policy. It makes no sense."

3) On sustainable development, he said:

"Other countries have proved that strong economies and strong environmetal policies complement each other. It is a myth that conservation destroys jobs or makes industry uncompetitive. We only have to look at best environmental practice in the energy, agriculture, transport and industrial sectors of countries like Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Japan and the USA. They show that the environmental agenda - habitat protection, resource conservation and pollution control - delivers - it delivers jobs, competitiveness, improved public sector finances and export markets, as well as a cleaner, healthier environment. Friends of the Earth research shows that, if Britain followed the environmental path, up to 700,000 jobs can be created over 15 years.

That surely is a goal worth pursuing."

4) On the forthcoming General Election, he said:

"Public concern about environmental problems remains at an all-time high. This General Election must be the one where that concern fuels genuine political debate about the hard choices that Britain must face up to, if deep-grained environmental problems, like global warming, are to be resolved and sustainability achieved. How high should energy prices rise, for example, to curb wasteful, polluting energy use? How can sustainable consumption rates of precious natural resources be achieved? How does one persuade car drivers to leave their vehicles at home, and let the train take the strain?

The Liberal- Democrats have a unique opportunity to help turn the Election green, given your environmental creedo and public credibility. Rise to the challenge. Inject your environmental thinking into all policy debates, in public and in Parliament. It will prove popular, and win votes. Better still, it is necessary and crucial to do. We cannot afford to ignore these issues any longer as a nation. We need to learn that some of the best ways of looking after people's needs is to look after the planet."

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS:

[1] Working Future: Jobs and the Environment' - a discussion paper in Friends of the Earth's Action Programme for Positive Change - shows, for example that: - if one quarter of UK farming went organic, employment in agriculture could increase by up to 45,000 jobs; - making polluters pay for clean-ups could create 2000,000 jobs in the environmental goods and services industry; - recycling domestic waste could create up to 11,500 jobs; - improving water quality could create up to 690,000 jobs. More detailed estimates of job creation from the report include: - If the Polluter Pays Principle was honoured throughout the economy, employment in the environmental goods and services industry would be 200,000 higher. (p.21) - If 500 million was directed at investments in the rail network in the UK, between 3,000 and 8,150 more jobs would be created than if the money were spent on road building. (p.42) - A 1.25 billion annual investment in insulation and energy efficiency in the homes of the fuel-poor could create 45,000 to 138,000 jobs. (p.57) - Utilising the UK's onshore wind energy resource to the full could create up to 107,000 jobs. (pp60 and 95) - A practical recycling target for 2000 - 50% of domestic waste - would create 2,450 to 11,500 additional jobs. (p.69) - A shift to a completely returnable system for beer and carbonated soft drinks would lead to a net increase of between 3,200 and 4,000 jobs in the United kingdom over three years. (p.66) - If 4440,000 to 590,000 hectares of broadleaved woodland were planted and managed for timber production (the area needed to substitute for the UK's tropical hardwood imports), then some 3,300-4,400 jobs could be created. (p.77)

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust