Carbon emissions

Comment made to Sutton Guardian in response to the Liberal Democrats claim that on carbon emissions, only they have "put forward firm plans to help is change our behaviour".

"For the Liberal Democrats to claim that they are the only party to "put forward firm plans" is laughable.

Sir Nicholas Stern's report, commissioned by The Chancellor of The Exchequer, reveals the apocalyptic cost of global warming if the issue is not tackled within a decade.

Since it's formation in 1973, when it was called the Ecology Party, the Green Party has continuously offered policy solutions to this impending global catastrophe, through its Manifesto for a Sustainable Society. The other parties, including the Liberal Democrats, are living in cloud cuckoo land if they think taxation is the only way to combat climate change. Yes, taxation is useful tool in tackling climate change but it must be used alongside regulation, legislation and public investment.

In the last General Election the Green Party's policy was, and still is, to abolish VAT and replace it with less environmentally damaging green taxes. VAT is a regressive tax which does not take into account the environmental impact of goods and services. However, taxation alone cannot reduce the UK's ecological footprint - legislation must be used, too. In Germany, the government has passed a law which guarantees a higher rate for commercial and domestic suppliers of renewable power. The result has been a boom in wind and solar power in that country. "