The Conservative Party and Energy Policy
Some Tories aren’t willing to admit that climate change is a man-made problem, and the debate has been raging between Conservative Home, and other blogs like Left Foot Forward. While AGW is debatable (And I’m not going to wade into it, neither having any serious level of qualification in Science, or the stomach to wade through masses of reports published by either side) it shouldn’t be an excuse for a lack of a coherent energy policy. Water shortage and energy security are some of the highest priorities for both the private sector, and governments and cannot afford to be ignored especially with the supply of oil in such delicate balance, within the Middle East , and the security of Nuclear Power in Eastern Europe (Where operational risks are high) nevermind future relations with powers like Russia where the escalation of the conflicts with Iran are starting to stir. It is unwise to leave such an important matter to the shifting nature of international relations.
The Conservative policy paper calls for a decentalised energy revolution, and rightly so. Grid reform — localising or privatising control of sections of the grid to ensure that entrepreneurs and community CHP schemes can compete with the big players are to play a key role in developing energy in the future while avoiding the sort of pork barrel politics that everyone on the right should wish to see gone.
What next however? With Copehagen looking on the verge of collapse those that believe in AGW that want to call for targets on emissions, and taxes to go with that have been dealt a blow, and haven’t been able to offer a solution that doesn’t involve international caps. (Even the most ardent campaigner would most likely admit that it would be foolish for Britain, or even the EU as a whole to put caps on emissions unilaterally). What can we do? The Conservative party should be responsible and put forward solutions for energy supply in the future. Not get caught up in a foolish debate on the Science of climate change, whether it is true or not there are still problems which must be addressed. The Conservative party are one of environmentalists, and it’s time to prove that.