The three main political parties are failing to show leadership on protecting the environment and developing a “green” economy, it has been claimed.
On the eve of the party conferences, the UK’s leading green groups warned that despite good performances by individual ministers and shadow ministers, none of the major parties had a coherent environmental programme.
And the leaders of the Tories, Lib Dems and Labour had not shown consistent public leadership on green issues since the 2010 general election, the review found.
Their failure was undermining investment in green infrastructure, and was disconnected from mainstream public opinion, which had not stopped caring about “our green and pleasant land” and continued to support renewables and action on climate change.
A review of the three main Westminster parties’ performance on the environment found that Prime Minister David Cameron, despite his pledge to lead the greenest government ever, had failed to address climate scepticism in the Conservative party.
Chancellor George Osborne had framed environmental policy as an obstacle to growth, not a route to prosperity, and the Prime Minister needed to signal stronger support for UK green policies, the review claimed.
The Liberal Democrats had made an impact on low carbon policies, but had failed to put the environment centre stage and were losing their identity as a “green” party.
Labour had supported the development of a low carbon economy, and received recognition from the green groups for opposing the forest sell-off and the badger cull.
But the review concluded there was “no real sense that the environment is at the heart of One Nation Labour”.
Matthew Spence, director of think-tank Green Alliance, which edited the review, said: “In private, our party leaders speak eloquently about the importance of environmental stewardship to their political mission, but they have rarely made the case publicly since the election.
“As a result the coalition has lost momentum as a reforming government seeking to be green.
“The opposition is raising its game but has been slow to develop the policy ideas necessary to realise its ambition.”
David Nussbaum, chief executive of WWF-UK, one of the groups which undertook the assessment, said: “The UK public love nature and expect their politicians to do more to preserve the environment for future generations.
“There’s also strong public support for renewable energy, action on pollution and tackling climate change – in short, for going green.
“The green economy has also bucked the trend of the recession and is the UK’s strongest growth sector.
“But these areas all need support, and mainstream politicians from each of the parties have failed to show visible and consistent leadership on the environment.
“Given that our leaders recognise that we’re in a global race to develop environmentally sustainable economies, it’s in their interest to show environmental leadership.”
The review is published by the Wildlife Trusts, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, WWF, the Campaign for Better Transport, Green Alliance and the RSPB, who collectively have a membership of 2.5 million people in the UK.
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