A LETTER asking all the main political-party leaders to "speak
with one voice" on the environment has been signed by hundreds of
people.
The letter, which began as an initiative from a Green book group
in London, says that in the next election, the public "need to know
that however we vote, the climate change policies will be given the
same priority".
Nearly 400 people, including several clerics - among them, the
Archdeacon of Harlow, the Ven. Martin Webster, and the Diocesan
Rural Officer for Chelmsford, the Revd Dr Julie Nelson - have
signed the letter, which has been sent to the Conservative, Green,
Labour, Liberal Democrat, and UKIP leaders by Catherine
Budgett-Meakin, a member of Christian Ecology Link. Other
signatories include Michael Mansfield QC and Mike Berners-Lee, an
expert on carbon emissions.
The letter criticises the Government for the "almost complete
absence of political debate about, or action on climate change",
and says that "individual voters can do little. All we get from the
politicians, the public, and the media is apathy or denial. Time is
running out.
"It is a moral and ethical matter, bigger and more important
than party politics."