If you thought David Cameron was bad as a friend-of-the-Earth Tory, he’s even worse now that he’s coalited with the LibDems. From the Telegraph:
The coalition agreement between the two parties has no less than 20 environmental commitments, nearly twice as many as in any other area. Unsurprisingly, it pays particular attention to the low-carbon economy, vigorously promoting energy saving and renewable energy over fossil fuels, high-speed rail and electric cars over air travel. Heathrow’s third runway will be scrapped, no new ones will be built at Stansted or Gatwick, and there will be tougher curbs on coal-fired power stations.
Nuclear power, too, may suffer. The two parties have agreed to differ on it; the concordat allows a “national planning statement” to go before Parliament which paves the way for new plants, although Lib Dem MPs will be able to abstain. And it also promises to establish a floor price for carbon emissions, a key request of the nuclear industry.
Yet this measure will benefit the renewable sector even more than the nuclear barons, and the new Government — unlike the old one — will make it a clear priority. The Tories are less enthusiastic about the atom than Labour, and the new Government will deny it subsidy; something nuclear power stations have historically needed in order to be built.