So...

Not content with tying the economy in knots while chancellor with his convoluted taxes and money-grabbing schemes, he's now going to issue the coup de grace by basically making just about every sort of productive work so costly in this country that every sane industry will either leave or shut down and on the say-so, not of science or necessity, but bloody loudest most incoherent scaremongers around.

brown is less green...

especially as he is intent at building more and more homes on the green belt land in essex!!! the bloke is an idiot and needs removing from any kind of power

Start the clean up at home Mr Brown.

I'll start to take notice what Brown said about climate and other aspects of global warming only after he, the rest of the government, the civil service and all MPs lose their car mileage allowances and start using electric or hybrid cars (and not just when a news camera is in the area.)

Good

This statement gave me a little bit of hope. Not a whole lot but at least we have the two major party leaders here talking in terms of the big picture. As far as I can tell our use of planetary resources is a lot like an ocean liner- the quicker we start turning things around the more likely we're going to be able to do it before we hit something that will really scupper us. There are walls in every direction- fossil fuel use, water use, climate change- we're going to run into some of them sooner or later, hopefully our governments will act on what they're talking about soon enough that we don't run into them too hard.

Life will have to change. We will have to deal with it. There's a good chance that the time we're living in now will be looked back on as a golden age. Contrary to some people's beliefs we won't lose our worthwhile industries - as non-renewable fuels become more scarce transporting products vast distances will become less viable and a degree of localisation will necessarily result. Either that or we'll be living in a sci-fi future with jet packs and instant meal pills (possibly even on Mars) and that will be awesome too so I won't mind too badly being wrong.

@Electric/hybrid cars are NOT the answer

I'm lucky enough to be able to cycle to work 3 or 4 times a week. This saves me a fortune on tube fares (that I probably end up spending on cycling gear!) and keeps me fit.

I may harbour a strong dislike of 4x4s, but I reckon Stuart Gray's got a point. It really comes down efficient use of cars. Car after car that I pass on my commute has a single person in it. Those cars are mostly at a standstill and still emitting CO2 and everything else (NO2, particulates, etc.).

Regular cars are also far less complicated to manufacture. We should really concentrate on having cars capable of 150+mpg and persuade people out of their cars and onto alternatives.

Whatever your view on climate change, we are still definitely talking about a finite resource when it comes to crude oil. It would be prudent to eke out as much use from every drop as possible.

Some good ideas

I'm not one to knock Mr Brown's eco-friendly plans entirely. For one, trying to get rid of the scourge of those tiny plastic bags that litter the country I have to class as a good idea.

However, it seems that on the whole this is nothing other than another tax-raising effort. If Mr Brown and friends were so serious about green politics, why doesn't he have a stern word with his "good friend" the American president and get him on board too.

Or maybe this is just so that if it turns out that sea levels will indeed rise due to anthropogenic global warming, we can all be smug in heaven that it wasnae us that drowned us all?

When do we get the chance to boot Gordon out?

As stated - yet an other excuse for a tax hike!

While 'green' land is built on, wars are waged & MP's have a free for all with expenses any statement of this type will raise the dreaded "Where is he going to screw us now?" feeling within.

I've voted labour the last few elections but now I feel its time for the liberals - or maybe even the conservatives. This is what happens when you put a money man in charge - you end up with a blinkered approach.

My council refused to take rubish in the wrong bin (cardboard in amongst paper) - I wonder why they had to back track after an uproar from their residents as no one supported all the extra 'green' initiatives?_

Failed gambler

Like a failed gambler on a loosing streak Brown hasn't a hope of meeting the current targets, so is planning to stealing more money from the tax payer to play double or nothing on ever slimmer odds, by committing us to these ridiculous targets.

I am not prepared to see my job and lifestyle taxed out of existence, to reduce the emissions of this tiny country by a drastic amount, but which is only equivalent to China's increase in a couple of months. All on the basis of fundamentally flawed climate modelling techniques, and well funded bullshit.