It’s Time to Stop Talking and Start Creating Green Jobs in the UK
Clean tech company Ultra Green is set to stir up the green collar debate ahead of the general election by hosting a controversial roundtable event in London.
The event, which will feature a number of high profile politicians and industry leaders, will explore the decline in UK manufacturing and how this could be revived through the fast growing renewable energy industry. MPs and leaders of UK industry will thrash out the issues on 23rd April 2010, from 11.30am at the Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms, London.
The roundtable will be chaired by Sir Crispin Tickell, a career diplomat and the Chairman of the UK Government panel on Sustainable Development. It will be a lively, apolitical event that will explore current government funding options available for developing cleaner technologies, and outline bureaucratic and planning barriers.
The seven-strong panel will be made up of industry heads and representatives from political parties, including the Right Honourable John Gummer, Conservative MP; Peter Jones, ex-director of Biffa Waste Services; Antony Blakey, Founder and Group Executive Chairman of Ultra Green; Philip Dilley, Chairman of London CBI* and Group Chairman of engineering consultancy Arup; Peter Ainsworth, Conservative MP for East Surrey; Victoria Johnson, New Economics Foundation; and Pamela Castle, Chairman of National Non-Food Crops Centre.
Antony Blakey of Ultra Green commented: “The UK is currently facing twin economic risks, with manufacturing now at an all time low of 12 per cent of GDP, and traditional power stations set for enforced shut down in 2013 as they reach the 20,000 hours running time limits imposed by the EU. This should open up a whole new avenue for the UK manufacturing sector to take the bull by the horns and help Britain meet its sustainable targets.”
npower’s Managing Director, Kevin Akhurst, agreed, saying: “It is likely that a significant proportion of the UK’s opted-out coal plants will close earlier than 2015, with the impact probably being felt around 2013.”
Antony Blakey continued: “The recession has shown us how vulnerable the financial sector is, yet the UK relies totally on this and other service-based businesses. We need to look at reviving our traditional industries, such as manufacturing, and Ultra Green is just one example of one company that has the potential to create over 500,000 highly skilled jobs, if it were not for financial restrictions and outdated regulations.“
Peter Jones, ex-director of Biffa Waste Services, comments: “There are three simple drivers that will deliver the vaunted ‘Green Revolution’ that our political leaders are ignoring at their peril. The first is availability of low carbon technology, which we already have. The second is the affordability of that technology, which is currently hanging by a thread due to incoherent approaches, such as bans, taxes and subsidies from different Government departments.
“Finally, there is the issue of public acceptance which can be achieved through a transparent and effective planning framework. Currently, there is a sizable gap in the credibility of integrated policy delivery on all three fronts, and we need to be logical and strategic in our approach and that is what this event is all about."
ENDS
*Confederation of British Industry
Notes to Editors:
About Ultra Green
Ultra Green (www.ultragreengroup.com) was founded to source innovative clean technologies that are commercially viable. The company’s technologies are designed both in-house and through joint venture partners.
Both routes support Ultra Green’s commitment to making a positive difference to the planet by creating lucrative business opportunities that support environmentally-friendly projects, as well as generating skilled and unskilled employment worldwide.
About Sir Crispin Tickell
Sir Crispin Tickell is a career diplomat whose posts include British Ambassador to Mexico (1981-83), Permanent Secretary of the Overseas Development Administration (1984-87) and British Permanent Representative to the United Nations (1987-90). He is also the Chairman of the UK Government panel on Sustainable Development, Chairman of the Climate Institute of Washington DC and is a senior visiting fellow at the Harvard University Centre for the Environment. He is also the author of “Climate Change and World Affairs” a seminal book that explores the global implications of climate change.
For further information, please contact:
Sophie Scutt
PR Officer
T : 01273 690285
M : 07775 566918
E: sophie.scutt@ultragreengroup.com
