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Less talking, more action is needed
[editor's title] I thank Barry Gardiner MP for his generous comments (‘New champion for the greens,’ Nov 6) following my adoption as Green Party candidate to contest Brent North at the next general election. Mr Gardiner and I have many differences including his support for the disastrous war in Iraq, the expensive renewal of the Trident missile system, the draconian Anti-terrorism laws and the liberty-threatening ID cards. However, I agree that the unprecedented threat of climate change, with its potentially catastrophic impact on the planet and our individual lives, calls for cross-party cooperation wherever possible. As we discuss the issue disagreements will emerge and the electorate will have the chance to decide whom to support. In the recent debate on the Climate Change Bill, he rightly pointed out to the government the Stern Report’s warning that the ‘costs of inaction are substantially higher than the costs of acting to mitigate climate change now’. However, he has been unwilling to back tough restrictions on new coal-fired power stations and has suggested that the expansion of the aviation and shipping industry could go ahead ‘as long as that were taken account within the carbon budget’. If we are rapidly running out of time to avert disaster as the climate scientists suggest, then the costs of inaction will not just be financial but will include massive loss of lives and disruption to many more. We have to act decisively now, before it is too late. Every year of delay adds significantly to the likelihood of catastrophe. Martin Francis Green Party Parliamentary Candidate for Brent North |
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