Raise ministerial expectations for our environment says Green Party

"We need action now" says Bennett

Government ministers who fail to reduce the UK’s rising air and noise pollution rates should be immediately sacked from the government, the Green Party has said.

ClientEarth, the campaign group responsible for forcing the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to create proposals to tackle illegal nitrogen dioxide levels in UK cities, has warned that they are seeking urgent court action against UK environment ministers should they fail to speed up urban air pollution reduction plans.

Natalie Bennett, the Green Party leader supports the proposals and also wants the government to get tough on ministers failing to meet environmental targets.

Natalie Bennett said:

“Rather than actually dealing with our air pollution problem, the government continues to give itself distant deadlines to complete urgent urban environmental work. We need action now, not tomorrow and not later.

“I fully support the work done by ClientEarth to ensure that that the government is legally accountable if it fails to act on reducing deadly levels of urban pollution and I want to see the government take action against those ministers who are guilty of inactivity.

"That should extend to climate action. If this government is serious about meeting those agreements set in Paris last year, then it must be willing to remove any government minister who doesn’t meet COP21 expectations."

She added:

“I also want the government to take serious action on noise pollution. A report by the Aviation Environment Federation published in January reveals that more than one million people in the UK are exposed to dangerous levels of aircraft noise, putting those people who live under flightpaths at an increased risk from heart attacks, high blood pressure, heart disease and strokes. London airport expansion makes little sense for the health of our citizens.”