The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Greenpeace have published press releases in response to Sir Menzies Campbell’s keynote speech on the environment in Norwich today. 
Keith Allott, head of Climate Change at the WWF, commented:
Sir Menzies’ speech shows that he has grasped the need for urgent action to tackle climate change. The range of measures, particularly proposals on green taxation for transport, including aviation, and energy use are welcome. We also support his call to make the new Sustainable Building Code mandatory for renovations and refurbishment as well as new build.
Sir Menzies has highlighted the steps the government must take to get back on track to meet its target of reducing the UK’s CO2 emissions by 20% by 2010. The Lib Dems are spot on – they realise that the best way of getting there is by taking much tougher action on the power sector using the European Emissions Trading Scheme. Sir Menzies is also right that the range of emissions cuts from heavy industry through the scheme, currently being considered by the government, are ‘not ambitious enough’ and that ‘we can and should, do better’.
Stephen Tindale, Executive Director of Greenpeace, commented:
Ming Campbell has set the gold standard for green speeches. He was not only rich on vision but rich on policy details too. He’s right that the failure to commit to very basic common sense measures in the face of climate change is the key problem in the UK, so Greenpeace endorses Campbell’s challenge to the other parties. There’s too much talk from New Labour and not yet enough substance from the Conservatives.
Campbell was quite right to highlight how vital it is to transform our power sector in particular. The Lib Dems must be credited for their honesty and objectivity in opposing new nuclear power. It is really excellent to hear the Lib Dem leader asking what has happened to the re-wiring Britain agenda. He is quite right that reforms to our electricity network are the kind of measure that will really close the gap between rhetoric and action.
Dear Menzies Campb
It occurs to me that a means to resolving the Israeli/ others issue might be – before those that the Israeli Gov’t is shouting about – would be the implementation of Security Council resolution 242
Yours
Neil Pirie
Please just read Neil Pirie’s comment. He betrays his feelings in writing of Israel’s “shouting”. He convinces me that Israel has plenty of enemies and needs to be ever mindful of its interests.
I think Ming Campbell is absolutely correct to prioritise the Environment in his speech; however, I wonder whether or not anything will come of it. It is all very well for the leader of a 3rd party to bang on about Green issues, but unless he is mounting a solid and concerted attack on the Conservatives for their valueless, media-centric politics and is winning the case to replace them as the 2nd biggest political force in Britain, he will again be destined to dust-covered history books. Ming: bash the Tories; use reason and solid argument to rubbish their unworkable and immoral policies; show them that it is time to return to a grittier, reality-based form of politics.
Sir Menzies should ask why the Goverments own consultants Jones Lang LaSalle shortlisted a gobal environmental centre for the Millennium dome it wasn’t follwed through. This would have been now generating £50 billion per year and the environmental chllenges all on the way to being resolved. This has cost us £250 billion and lost us 5 years.
And did Gordon Brown and David Camron borrow some of their ideas from the crotically acclaimed consultation document Scotland: The Worlds First Ecological Superpower, circulated to every MSP around Holyrood in early April 2006