press releases

The UK government's position on energy inefficient lightbulbs was thrown into doubt today after its Irish counterpart announced legislation to introduce mandatory efficiency standards for light bulbs which will see them banned by the beginning of 2009.

David Cameron will today visit the Greenpeace direct action warehouse to announce a new policy that would see householders receive a guaranteed premium price for any renewable electricity they generate. 

A new Conservative paper - released today - looks to adopt Greenpeace proposals designed to kick-start a local energy revolution by making the costs of installing technologies such as domestic solar power much more affordable, while ensuring householders who generate clean energy get a higher price for the electricity they feed into the grid.

Greenpeace today launched a landmark proposal for reducing, and ultimately stopping, tropical deforestation.

The initiative was launched at a side event of the Bali Climate Conference, featuring the Governors of Papua and Papua Barat, the provinces with the largest intact tropical forests in Indonesia.

Greenpeace believes that finding solutions to ending deforestation must be a key objective of the conference for the following reasons:

The former chief economist to the Treasury, Sir Nicholas Stern, will today deliver a keynote speech to the Royal Economic Society in London on the need for urgent action to combat climate change.

His speech comes days before a major climate summit in Bali which will be attended by environment ministers from across the world. Meanwhile the Corporate Leaders Group on Climate Change, overseen by the Prince of Wales, today unveiled a Bali communiqué to which many of the world's leading brands are signatories.

Reacting to Gordon Brown's speech to the CBI this morning, Greenpeace executive director John Sauven said:

"The prime minister last week outlined plans to generate twenty per cent of our energy from renewable sources, now just one week later we are back to the old mantra of nuclear power. Declarations like this threaten to strangle the renewables industry before it can even get close to that 2020 target."

Gordon Brown tomorrow faces his first test since pledging to put Britain at the forefront of efforts to combat climate change. A proposal to build the UK's first coal fired power station in over thirty years (1) will land on his desk on the same day his government launches a consultation on expansion at Heathrow airport.

The outcome of Brown's decisions on new coal and new runways will determine whether Britain can meet its long-term global warming targets, which the Prime Minister on Monday suggested would be revised upwards to an 80 per cent cut in emissions by 2050.

Responding to news that massive quantities of cod and other fish species in European waters are being discarded because of the fishing quota system, Greenpeace oceans campaigner Oliver Knowles said:

Reacting to Gordon Brown's speech outlining his vision to make Britain a low carbon nation, Greenpeace executive director John Sauven said:

"Brown now appears to be serious about meeting the binding EU renewables targets. But more debate won't get us there. Action is what counts, not words. No investment will take place off the back of a speech alone.

Eurostar action celebrates new rail line, but damns PM for Heathrow plans

Greenpeace climbers dodged police and security guards this morning before scaling the front of St Pancras station and dropping a massive banner emblazoned with the word 'YES!' in three metre high letters.

KitKat, Pringles and Flora all implicated; palm oil industry "out of control"

A month before a major UN climate summit in Bali, new research reveals how a handful of the UK's best known brands are complicit in the destruction of Indonesia's peat swamp forests. These peatlands now account for a massive 4% of the world's total annual greenhouse gas emissions. (1)