David Cameron's green Christmas message

"Dear Supporter,

First of all I want to wish you and your family a Happy Christmas. We’ve reached the end of a year that has shown that politics can be exciting and that change is possible.

One of the changes I’d like to make in 2006 is for our party to show sustained leadership on environmental issues. I want us to meet the aspirations of the millions of people who care deeply about the environment and our quality of life.  It’s the right thing to do - and we can start straight away. 

The fact is that we’re all in this together, and politics isn’t just about elections and opinion polls. Politics is about making a difference and making a personal commitment, and each of us can show our personal commitment to the environment by enjoying a green Christmas this year.

In Britain this year, we’ll send each other somewhere in the region of 1 billion Christmas cards, wrap our presents in more than 80 square kilometres of wrapping paper, and empty more than 20 million glass jars and bottles over the festive period. If we all made an effort to recycle just half of that then we’d really make a difference to the environment.

This year the Woodland Trust is placing special bins in supermarkets around the country to collect old Christmas cards, and local councils will recycle wrapping paper and glass bottles and jars. You can visit http://www.woodland-trust.org.uk/cards/index.htm for more information on the Woodland Trust project. Your local council may also offer kerbside shredding facilities for your Christmas tree – your council website will have more information about this.

By showing our personal commitment to the environment, every one of us in the Conservative Party can help make our Party a voice for real environmental leadership, showing that as individuals and as a Party we’re serious about tackling the big challenges this country faces.

So once again, Happy Christmas - and let’s look forward to 2006 confident in our opportunity to become a growing voice for change, optimism and hope.

David Cameron"

Comments

[Daniel Vince-Archer]

Hear hear. It's good to see our party doing something productive regarding the environment, unlike the Liberal Demoprats, whose big wheeze was a ridiculous publicity stunt to deliver a bicycle to Jeremy Clarkson for Christmas. See here.

[michael fishwick]

Great to hear DC mention the Woodland Trust! This is a great charity and I'd urge people to join it or at least register as a supporter.

[Frank Young]

Fantastic.

He represents my feelings on politics entirely. We can go into the new year with every confidence.

[Burkean]

Hmmm. And what about the extra energy, water, and labour expended to collect, sort, clean, and process the materials? The trouble with recycling is that it often ends up being more wasteful than the waste. Most economic studies of recycling confirm this.

Once again, we see Cameron's environmental policy being based on soundbites rather than thought. How 21st century of him.

[Frank Young]

Burkean you are clearly a man passionate about the environment, surely you welcome the new turquoise Conservative party.

You share David Cameron's commitment to the environment and I’m sure in time Tory policy will enable you to make the differences to the environment you and we all want to see.

Welcome this.

[Goldie]

Quite frankly, I am starting to get irritated with Cameron.

He really should have pounced much harder on the surrender of Blair on Europe.

This would have been an ideal way of showing that he is actually a Conservative, instead of this blather on the environment.

A missed opportunity.

[PD James]

I thoroughly agree with David Cameron on this. I realised a few years ago the waste of sending Xmas cards and the use of wrapping paper.

Fantastic to hear a Tory so committed to environmental issues.

[Mark Fulford]

Goldie - this was a Christmas message to Conservatives. What difference would attacking Tony Blair make? We're all fed up with him anyway.

Burkean - soundbites are a feature of politics. At least Cameron is choosing environmental soundbites. And I presume that you're not suggesting that supporting the Woodland Trust, recycling bottles, card, etc is actually worse for the environment than not doing these things.

[Michael McGowan]

While I do all these things because I am a "progressive, modern" member of the middle classes who "cares" for the environment, I accept that it is also doubtful how much good recycling bottles and card actually does after taking account of the amount of energy needed to transport and recycle them. One isn't allowed to say these things too loudly of course because it's not PC to do so. Belief in the virtues of recycling - all recycling- has become an article of dogma, not a reasoned choice.

[Jaz]

A Very touching message, with a decent point, not over politicised.

[Alexander Drake]

Don't agree Jaz. I think it's GREAT politics. It reminds me in a way of that scene in the movie "Primary Colours" where Larry Hagman's character takes over as the lead presidential primary candidate by giving blood, and encouraging everyone else to as well, after his friend pulls out of the race.

This guy is on the game.

[Alexander Drake]

PS: But Dave, what's with the Happy Christmas tag? It's Merry Christmas, you damned anti-traditionalist, you!

[Goldie]

I am a Conservative because I am (or try to be) 'crunchy' but apparently we must all be 'soggy' now.

Humbug!

[Bishop Hill]

Mark Fulford:

Whether it is advisable to recycle something or not is primarily a question of economics. It is never as simple as "recycling good, landfill bad". There have been many reports recently of recycled goods being shipped huge distances in search of someone who actually wants them. That is environmental lunacy IMHO.

Good article on the subjecthere

[Alexander Drake]

Aww, come on Goldie! Tis the season and all that. Besides, look on the polls as a nice Christmas present. No one's saying you can't be crunchy - just have a drink handy while you're crunching, just in case.

C'mon guys - this has got to be the only political party in the world where people are unhappy that it's finally doing well for a change!!!!!

Merry Christmas!

[James Hellyer]

"And I presume that you're not suggesting that supporting the Woodland Trust, recycling bottles, card, etc is actually worse for the environment than not doing these things."

Rubbish (in more ways than one). To give but one example:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/07/18/ngreen18.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/07/18/ixhome.html

[Richard Carey]

"This guy is on the game."

Well, I'm a pretty liberal kind of guy with the best of them, but I sincerely hope you mean "in the game" - doesn't the other version have certain connotations?! Seriously, I thought this was a really good political move, as well as an honest one.

In terms of the environmental impact of recycling, I have alway thought that the best schemes were the ones that did not rely purely on government targets for kerbside collections, but instead encouraged people in some way to drop off their recycling at places (supermarkets, schools etc.) that they would be travelling to anyway.

[James Hellyer]

"doesn't the other version have certain connotations?!"

And The Times would say those connotations are appropriate for our new leader.

[Mark Fulford]

Rubbish (in more ways than one).

What's rubbish is your misleading vividness.

[Alexander Drake]

Richard I've just spilt a cup of tea on my keyboard from laughing at the very good point you've made about my posting.

Er...yes, I meant in the game. Or, on the ball. Either is preferable to the unfortunate mangling of phrase in my above posting! Oops.

[johnC]

Thanks to global warming we have no alternative but to enjoy a green Christmas this year. Saatchi's next election slogan: Save the polar bears ! Vote Tory for a White Christmas !