house flooded
Tony Blair says climate change is "probably the single most important issue that we face". He says "there is no doubt that the time to act is now. It is now that timely action can avert disaster."
But the Prime Minister is rejecting two proposals to increase energy efficiency in residential homes and social housing and he is forcing Labour MPs to follow suit.
The House of Lords proposed two amendments to the Housing Bill that would help reduce our CO2 emissions while tackling fuel poverty. The Housing Bill has been shuffled between both houses several times over the last year. It covers a range of housing issues and would provide local authorities with new powers to tackle inequalities and problems with private housing.
The first amendment for energy efficiency by the House of Lords would set a target to increase residential energy efficiency by at least 20% by 2010. The other commits the government to ensure that all social housing has insulation, heating and ventilation equivalent to those required in newly built homes by 2016.
These two amendments would not only benefit the climate, but help reduce the number of people - currently some 30,000 - who die needlessly every winter in the UK because they can't afford to heat their poorly insulated homes.
Blair says the measures are too costly and has forced 123 MPs who initially supported the measure, to fall into line behind the party rather than the needs of their constituents, many of whom will be badly hit by current and future energy price hikes.
It's no wonder people don't trust politicians.
Greenpeace Executive Director Stephen Tindale said: "Tony Blair's fine words almost convinced us that he was serious about tackling climate change. Unfortunately his actions show that he is, as his friend George Bush might say, all hat and no cattle. If the PM can't even deliver a serious drive on energy efficiency, he can kiss goodbye to his aspiration to lead the fight against global warming."
While Blair says we cannot afford the measures, his Chief scientist Sir David King says we can't afford not to act when it comes to climate change "Action is affordable, inaction is certainly not."
"We all have a responsibility and a role to play in this, from governments through to industry and individual citizens," said Sir David recently at a Greenpeace Business lecture.
Download the Greenpeace briefing: Housing Bill Amendments (pdf)
Download the Greenpeace and ACT advertisement (pdf) that ran in the Guardian.
