Motion #02
Conference notes with dismay recent government announcements concerning the natural environment: the suggestion that the Environmental Land Management Scheme may be scrapped and replaced by the return of an area-based payments scheme which benefits large landowners; removal of local planning constraints, including the requirement for improvements for nature and water quality, favouring property developers at the expense of local communities; the scrapping of decades old UK environmental protection laws; the low targets set for reducing sewage discharge; and, finally, the removal of the fracking ban, all in opposition to their 2019 manifesto commitments.
Conference therefore calls upon our leaders and spokespeople, local councillors, activists and all our members:
● to work with other organisations ideally on a cross-party basis, to resist this dangerous, foolhardy and blatantly undemocratic change of policy direction
● to stress at every opportunity the importance of a healthy natural environment for human health and wellbeing, climate change resilience and sustainable economic management
● to publicise our Green Party policies which strengthen the protection of nature and the environment
● to contact Conservative councillors across the country and urge them to reject the proposals put forward by the new Government.