Views
Green measures need to be socially fair - for the Inverness Courier
LAST week I met a group of local Friends of the Earth campaigners, preparing for the crucial summit in Copenhagen in December.
The meeting is widely regarded as the last best chance the world has to prevent a climate catastrophe.
Global measures to rapidly reduce carbon emissions need to be agreed if global temperature increases are to be held below the 1.7 degrees scientists now agree is the threshold for dangerous, runaway climate change.
At the moment our government reports carbon emissions, down 16 per cent since 1990, but does not report carbon consumption. If we take emissions based on consumption then they have gone up 19 per cent since 1990. China argues that we should take some responsibility for these "offshore emissions", and with good reason.
If we are to find harmony in climate change negotiations we need to meet each other halfway over this sort of issue.
People around the world are pressing their governments to be bold at this summit, and not to allow petty rivalries to prevent agreement. Locally, we have a critical role to play in making sure the UK government understands that it must not evade its responsibilities. I hope local people will put their views directly to me, and to ministers, so that we can keep the pressure on the government to be bold.
The Highlands has huge potential in renewable energy. We need government to be much bolder in support of the marine technologies that offer such great opportunities.
But we need to ensure that green measures are socially fair too. That's why making homes more energy efficient needs to be a top priority. If more resource was focused on hard-to-treat homes, we would see a triple benefit of lower carbon emissions, lower bills and lower fuel poverty.
EXPENSES
When MPs returned to the Commons this week, the expenses scandal reared its head again in the form of the audit of claims carried out by Sir Thomas Legg.
This process is a vital part of clearing out the mess of the old lax rules and the poor administration of them, and it should be fully supported by all MPs.
Sir Thomas has asked me to resupply copies of old gas and electricity bills for my small London flat, which had obviously been lost in the system. He identified one bill, for the £125 cost of financial advice, which I have immediately repaid.
This latest episode has simply reinforced the case for fundamental change in our politics. After the scandal died down earlier in the year, it seemed that too many Labour and Tory MPs were happy to slip back to business as usual, without making the radical changes needed. Far from suppressing Sir Thomas's report, as some MPs seem to be trying to do, his work should be extended to cover the most serious offences — those who have claimed for phantom mortgages or "flipped" their homes. We are still waiting for the Kelly report that will give new rules on expenses. But the expenses scandal is a symptom of a much deeper arrogance and complacency that affects Westminster. When so many MPs have safe seats, and two parties expect to get a turn at power every few years without ever winning a majority of votes, it is no wonder they feel they can ignore voters. If we can change the system so that Parliament is elected with every vote counting, it would kick-start the culture change we desperately need.
Posted on: 20/10/2009
