Meeting with David Kidney, Parliamentary under- secretary

Meeting with David Kidney, Parliamentary under-secretary of state for DECC on the 26th October, was insightful and informative, as well as a great opportunity to take a sneaky peak at where all our government ministers hang out in Portcullis House. It was amazing to see so many people’s faces lit with the phosphorescence of politics and to feel, for a short time, part of the system that dictates so much of our lives.

The meeting was surprisingly informal, we all really liked David’s positive attitude about a ‘greener, brighter future’ with lots more jobs- a phrase he was clearly fond of. The meeting opened with an affirmative handshake. Katie, Luke, Graeme and myself then all gave a short synopsis of what we have been doing in our local areas, before we got down to asking some probing questions, including:

· What is the UK government hoping to get out of Copenhagen? A FAB deal that is fair, ambitious and binding – we thought this was fabulous.
· What are the barriers to action being taken on climate change? David was concerned that copyrights and patents would restrict technology being available to developing countries and there would be a degree of reluctance from developing countries also.
· Do you see the recession as an opportunity or a hindrance to tackling climate change? Building a sustainable future will create new jobs and work opportunities, so would be beneficial.

Fortunately, David didn’t over indulge in the usual political trick of pretending we asked a different question and answering that! We hope to meet with him or Ed Miliband again after the forum. And of course, handing over the manifesto from the Children’s climate forum to Gordon Brown would be the icing on our ‘don’t bake the planet’ campaign.

Fingers crossed!

Cressie M-T