Eighteen years on from David Cameron’s “hug a husky” campaign of 2006, where the climate and nature crises were largely viewed with cross-party consensus, we look back through the (many) Tory manifestos since 2010 to see how the Conservatives’ environmental message has evolved.
Theresa May, who would later sign net zero into law, was keen to make it a large part of her offering, too, promising that the country would continue to be a world leader on climate change.
May continued to back fracking in 2017 and said there was no need for large-scale onshore wind but also promised to keep the UK as a world leader in offshore, and to improve energy efficiency in people’s homes as well as offering smart meters to every household and business by the end of 2020.
But in 2024 Sunak, once again, seems to have gone backwards, committing to restricting ground-mounted solar panels from farmland and guaranteeing no new green levies or charges to fund renewables.
Instead he promises freezes on fuel duty, a “plan for drivers” and to criminalise dangerous cyclists, after last year delaying the phaseout of petrol and diesel cars.
Sunak’s 2024 offering is thinner gruel; he pledged to implement a rule on forest risk commodities where the import of goods from areas under illegal deforestation is banned, and promised to designate the 11th national park, and use water company fines to clean up the country’s rivers, as well as vowing to cut red tape to help people plant more trees.
The original article contains 1,080 words, the summary contains 251 words. Saved 77%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
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Eighteen years on from David Cameron’s “hug a husky” campaign of 2006, where the climate and nature crises were largely viewed with cross-party consensus, we look back through the (many) Tory manifestos since 2010 to see how the Conservatives’ environmental message has evolved.
Theresa May, who would later sign net zero into law, was keen to make it a large part of her offering, too, promising that the country would continue to be a world leader on climate change.
May continued to back fracking in 2017 and said there was no need for large-scale onshore wind but also promised to keep the UK as a world leader in offshore, and to improve energy efficiency in people’s homes as well as offering smart meters to every household and business by the end of 2020.
But in 2024 Sunak, once again, seems to have gone backwards, committing to restricting ground-mounted solar panels from farmland and guaranteeing no new green levies or charges to fund renewables.
Instead he promises freezes on fuel duty, a “plan for drivers” and to criminalise dangerous cyclists, after last year delaying the phaseout of petrol and diesel cars.
Sunak’s 2024 offering is thinner gruel; he pledged to implement a rule on forest risk commodities where the import of goods from areas under illegal deforestation is banned, and promised to designate the 11th national park, and use water company fines to clean up the country’s rivers, as well as vowing to cut red tape to help people plant more trees.
The original article contains 1,080 words, the summary contains 251 words. Saved 77%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!