Less than a week to go until the “snap” General Election 2017 that nobody wanted but what are the parties promising on the environment?
Here’s a quick summary:
Green Party
- preserve all EU environmental laws and principles after Brexit
- introduce Environment Protection Act to preserve wildlife and habitats and ensure all have right to access green space
- work towards global temperature rise of below 1.5 degrees
- ban fracking
- end fossil-fuel use
- support onshore wind and solar power
- all new homes to be zero carbon by 2020 and improve energy efficiency of old homes
- remove diesel cars through scrappage
- £2 million for cycle and walking schemes
- redirect farmer subsidies towards sustainable land management
- marine protection network around the UK, maintaining sustainable fish stocks
Labour
- will meet international climate targets and transition to low carbon economy
- protect current EU environmental standards and principles
- nationalise the energy market
- ban fracking
- interest free loans for landlords to improve energy sufficiency of their properties, as well as improving insulation in 4 million homes
- introduce a Clean Air Act
- invest in electric vehicle manufacture and use
- targets to reduce plastic bottle waste
- plant 1 million trees to help natural flood management
- protect land and sea habitats
Liberal Democrats
- maintain EU environmental standards
- create governmental office for sustainability
- create blue belt for marine life
- introduce a Zero Carbon Britain Act, Green Buildings Act, Zero Waste Act, and an Air Quality Act
- expand renewables by 60% by 2030
- diesel scrappage scheme
- plant a tree per citizen
- maintain Paris climate obligations
- £2 million for flood prevention
- redirect farmers’ subsidies towards healthy food and effective land management
Conservatives
- continue to meet the international goal of reducing emissions by 80% by 2050
- £600 million investment to make every car have zero emissions by 2050
- upgrading poor fuel homes by 2030 to EPC band C
- possible offshore wind technology, particular in the Scottish isles (if they are still within the UK….)
- subsidies for farmers guaranteed until 2022 (new schemes to come into play after that)
- improving water courses with landowners to manage natural flood defenses
- commercial fishing to preserve fish stocks
- free vote on the Hunting Act
Hope this helps you come to the right decision for the environment this Thursday!