Irish Election are pleased to announce our collection of Irish 
Seamus Ryan: Why Labour Must Go Green
Read more about: Climate Change, Column, Green Party, Labour Party
I didn’t intend writing about the Environment this week, however the conference in Nairobi on the effects of climate change has put the environment at the top of the political agenda, albeit only for a brief period. Yet, here in Ireland, the main political parties continue to ignore the importance of this issue.
Complex environmental issues such as waste management, alternative sources of energy, climate change, sustainable development and the environment and the economy need to be addressed by this government and indeed future governments as a matter of urgency. The failure of this government over the last ten years to address these issues in a serious manner has resulted in Ireland playing catch up with other countries.
Without a doubt, the forthcoming general election will be fought on many fronts, with major policy documents on economics, health, housing and other important areas of concern emanating from all the parties. But what party will place the environment at the heart of its political agenda? Is it not time that the environment became a major political issue here in Ireland?
I would argue that all parties have failed on this issue.
There is a lack of serious debate on the environment in this country. In my opinion, Fianna Fail, the Progressive Democrats and Fine Gael are compromised by their strong links with the construction industry, developers and the farming sector and may be the reason for this lack of debate. This leaves room for the Labour Party to embrace this issue and to place it at the centre of any alternative government. With central and local government in this country continuing to put the focus on planning for developers rather than planning for communities, I believe that it falls to the Labour Party to take up this challenge and make the environment a key priority in any alternative government.
At the opening of the conference in Nairobi, Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General referred to two reports on the effects of climate change as follows:
First, according to the latest data submitted to the United Nations, the greenhouse gas emissions of the major industrialised countries continue to increase. Second, a study by the former chief economist of the World Bank, Sir Nicholas Stern of Britain, called climate change “the greatest and widest-ranging market failure ever seen,” with the potential to shrink the global economy by 20 per cent and cause economic and social disruption on a par with the two World Wars and the Great Depression.
The United Nations Climate Change Conference has given governments a sharp wake up call that climate change may be “the most serious threat ever to face humankind.” Whether this is true or not remains to be seen, but one thing that is certain is that we will ignore the environment at our peril.
[The author is a Labour councillor who blogs at seamusryan.blogspot.com.]
I would argue that all parties have failed on this issue.
There is a lack of serious debate on the Environment in this country. In my opinion Fianna Fail, the Progressive Democrats and Fine Gael are compromised by their strong links with the construction industry, developers and the farming sector and may be the reason for this lack of debate. This leaves room for the Labour Party to embrace this issue and to place it at the centre of any alternative government.
Have you forgotten the Green Party there. Like to point out where they have failed the enviroment?
I agree with simon, you cant simply assert the greens have failed the environment particularly when they seem likely to pick up seats at the next election on the back of their policies on environment.
“This leaves room for the Labour Party to embrace this issue and to place it at the centre of any alternative government.
Unless the greens make up the maths and do it before labour.
I think Simon’s question “Like to point out where they have failed the environment?” distorts Ryan’s actual claim. The failure he refers to (as far as I can see) is the failure to make the Environment (capitalised, of course!) a major political issue in Ireland. By this standard, it could be argued that the Greens have failed, although one might question how different the political landscape might look if the Greens had never existed in the first place.
Personally, I think Ryan’s wrong, but for a different reason. I agree that environmental issues, climate change in particular, aren’t given enough weight as electoral concerns. The fault, however, lies not with the political parties, but with the electorate itself. If people don’t take climate change seriously, it’s hardly surprising that political parties will reflect this.
I think to some extent in recent years, Labour have gone Green, and the Greens have gone Labour. The ideological differences between the two parties are mainly a matter of emphasis, rather than actual policy. If it weren’t the case that the two compete in almost every constituency where the Greens exist, there’d be little standing in the way of a merger other than personalities.
The failure he refers to (as far as I can see) is the failure to make the Environment (capitalised, of course!) a major political issue in Ireland.
It is a bigger issue then inequality which suggest Labour have failed even more then the greens. and with the greens second in the capital they are certainly highlighting it.
Simon, I would argue that all parties have failed the environment. Some more than others. If you take Smiffy’s point that the environment is not a major issue with the electorate then I think that is the proof that politics has failed the environment. I am writing from a Labour Party point of view and believe that there is an obligation for the Party to grasp this issue.
FG can’t hope that when the Kyoto crap hits the fan they can withdraw from the protocol claiming they can’t make it work - Canada’s Tory govt is claiming the targets are unattainable due to the laxity of the previous Liberal govt but is getting clobbered in Nairobi. A spell in opposition when the fines come crashing in would suit FF just fine I’d say.