Greenpeace today challenged lorry drivers protesting in Edinburgh about fuel price rises by sending vans emblazoned with the message 'Global warming kills - keep the fuel tax' to join their convoy.
Greenpeace today took a message about the real cost of fuel to lorry drivers protesting in Edinburgh about fuel prices by sending vans emblazoned with 'GLOBAL WARMING KILLS - KEEP THE FUEL TAX' to join the convoy.
According to the World Health Organisation, 160,000 people are already dying every year as a result of floods, droughts, storms and disease caused by climate change. If our dependence on oil is not reduced the figures are set to increase dramatically.
Rob Gueterbock, Greenpeace climate campaigner, said:
Greenpeace campaigner Rob Gueterbock addressed the truckers rally in Hyde Park today and told the protestors that they were wrong to argue for lower taxes on dirty petrol and diesel but right to support new green alternative fuels.
A mobile team from Greenpeace will be challenging the fuel protest convoy along the entire length of their route. The volunteers - travelling in vehicles powered by green fuels such as compressed natural gas and bio-diesel [1] - will argue the case for high taxes on oil-based fuels. Greenpeace believes that Gordon Brown was wrong to reduce the cost of oil-based petrol and diesel because of the impact they have on climate change.
A new opinion poll released at the Greenpeace Business Conference reveals that the public is willing to pay the current fuel tax so long as a proportion of it is guaranteed to be spent on the environment. A survey by NOP shows that 68% of respondents would be happier paying the current tax if some of it was spent on 'reducing pollution...by investing in public transport and developing green fuels'.
Commenting on the current controversy surrounding fuel taxation, Stephen Tindale, Greenpeace Policy Director, said: "Greenpeace agrees with the Government - it is absolutely right not to reduce fuel taxes. Unless we break our addiction to fossil fuels, extreme weather events like the floods in Mozambique will massively increase and the Arctic ice sheet will vanish in forty years. The climate crisis gives us no choice but to reduce our use of petrol and diesel - in fact prices need to rise further in future.
