Your MP writes (From Worcester News)

Your MP writes

8:58am Thursday 18th January 2007

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The serious risks of climate change are beyond dispute, and as individuals we all have a part to play in doing our bit. But I urge caution on some of the more zealous attitudes displayed by some arguing for changes. There are always going to be conflicts between what is good for the environment and what might be good for us in other aspects.

In this type of dispute, a little understanding on both sides will serve us all well. Add to this the fact that people, through no fault of their own, may not know the full environmental consequences of their actions. So a little understanding and education will encourage more people to think green than some form of draconian green fascism does.
I have received correspondence suggesting foreign holidays are stopped. This is just not sensible or desirable. Now there are good reasons for enjoying a UK holiday, but it is wrong to limit people’s horizons and stop them experiencing foreign travel. Becoming more isolationist will not solve any problems, but it will create them.
So I prefer to see individuals taking actions they can, with the simple ones being often the most effective.
Fitting energy efficient light bulbs, reducing central heating temperatures and sourcing electricity from renewables are all easy and cheap to do, and help enormously in combating carbon emissions. They’ll save you money as well.
While we all do our bit, we also should be investing in new technologies that help us find a solution to the problem. It can be done.
Locally, Worcester Bosch has shown this with its development of the condensing gas boiler for central heating.
Now it is branching out into solar power and other renewable technologies.
So let’s look at what we do – improve our activities as individuals and at the same time, not rely on it, but invest and develop technical solutions to help us tackle climate change.