Ed Davey's first message to the grass roots

Fair play to Ed, he's been in the cabinet for less than a week and already he's written to everybody. And here's what he had to say...

Dear Richard,

Some things in politics are symbolic. For dyed-in-the-wool environmentalists like the Liberal Democrats, solar power is one of these things – indisputably clean, green and cutting edge technology. The sort of thing Liberal Democrats in a government that aims to be the greenest ever should be unequivocally behind.

Our commitment to the environment was why I joined the party in the first place. That’s why I want solar power to be as widely available as possible.

As it stands, the Feed in Tariffs scheme that helps people to install solar panels in their homes or businesses reaches too few people. By lowering the tariff we can extend it to more people – making clean, green, renewable energy available to the many, not the few.

That’s why I am announcing a consultation to look at exactly how we reform the tariff to make sure as many people as possible take advantage of it.

I want more solar panels installed and more carbon emissions saved than under the old scheme.

I want the returns you get from solar power to be predictable, sustainable and attractive.

And I want to give a real boost to micro-combined heat and power, which allows people produce clean, green electricity in their homes.

I am proud of the big, ambitious green measures the Liberal Democrats in the Coalition Government have undertaken:

• The Green Deal which will lead an energy efficiency revolution in our homes
• The Green Investment Bank to kickstart green businesses and green jobs
• The most ambitious climate change targets a country has ever set
• And real progress at Cancun to get international agreement on climate change

I don’t believe that fighting climate change and rebuilding our economy are mutually exclusive. I believe green jobs are the key to our recovery.

And I don’t believe going green means hitting people in the pocket. Energy efficiency, our reforms of the energy market and giving consumers more information will help bring down bills.

I am determined that this will be the greenest government ever. I’m up for that challenge and I’m sure all Liberal Democrats feel the same.

A longer version of this message is available at Liberal Democrat Voice.

Yours,



Ed Davey MP
Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change