As climate change rages, the Green Party gains ground in England

With traditional party loyalties eroding by the day, Britain’s electorate is becoming ever more fragmented and volatile, undermining the two-party duopoly. This is exemplified by the rise of Britain’s burgeoning Green Party. Since 2019, the Party has enjoyed record levels of electoral success, with its tally of elected councillors rising to an unprecedented 812 – the highest it’s ever been. Polling averages suggest the Greens will win 6% of the vote at the upcoming general election, more than doubling their support in 2019, and electoral projections suggest they will win two seats – up from just the one in 2019.

The Greens are well-placed to make gains, attracting progressive voters who feel alienated by a Labour Party that has, under Keir Starmer’s leadership, shed many of the left-wing policies it once held dear. The Party’s manifesto clearly outflanks Labour to the left on issues like tax, welfare, and public ownership – and its radicalism is particularly notable on an issue that has always been its bread and butter: the environment and climate change.

Just this year, 4% of Labour voters have defected to the Greens.

A plurality of voters think the Greens are best placed to handle environmental and climate issues. Just this year, 4% of Labour voters have defected to the Greens – constituting 25% of the Party’s current support. Members of this group tend to prioritise environmental and climate issues, with a whopping 83% disliking Starmer.

With the Tories having veered to the right on climate policy under Rishi Sunak, there are clear dividing lines between the two main parties on green issues. Whilst the Tories have committed to maintaining annual licensing rounds for North Sea oil and gas licenses, Labour have pledged to ban new licenses. Labour’s Shadow Secretary for Net Zero, Ed Miliband, has also pledged to reverse the Tories’ postponement of the ban on new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035, alongside the watering down of minimum energy efficiency standards for rented housing. This complements other measures, including reforms to Britain’s planning system to enable higher levels of green infrastructure development, plus a new publicly owned energy company, GB Energy, that would invest in clean energy technologies like floating offshore wind.

The Greens have capitalised on Labour’s timidity, proposing a raft of ambitious policies to tackle climate change

However, Labour’s record on climate issues is hardly spotless. Earlier this year, the Party heavily watered down its proposals for green public investment in the face of pressure from the media, the Tories, and figures on the Labour right. Its proposed spending on climate initiatives has plummeted from £28 billion to £4.75 billion annually, a 5/6ths reduction. Analysts have also noted that Labour’s manifesto commitments on environmental and climate issues are lacking in detail, with the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment suggesting the Party’s proposals are not ambitious enough for tackling the climate crisis. More broadly, rigid fiscal rules and tax policies that Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves has repeatedly committed to will make it incredibly difficult for the Party to ramp up its ambition on climate issues once elected.

The Greens have capitalised on Labour’s timidity, proposing a raft of ambitious policies to tackle climate change and committing to reaching net zero by 2040 – compared to the 2050 target Labour and the Tories have maintained. They partly intend to achieve this through tax policies that both major parties have shied away from endorsing, such as a carbon tax on fossil fuel imports and domestic extraction alongside a ‘frequent flyer levy’ on those that regularly use air travel. Other commitments include a pledge to provide 70% of the UK’s wind energy by 2030 and an end to all fossil fuel subsidies. Moreover, whilst Labour have said they will only ban new oil and gas licenses, giving the green light to projects like the Rosebank oil and gas field that have already received licenses, the Green Party has gone a step further, saying they will cancel fossil fuel licenses that have already been issued – including for Rosebank.

The immense challenges meeting a 2040 net zero target will entail would be exacerbated by the Party’s hostility to nuclear power.

That being said, contradictions at the heart of the Green Party’s prospectus have led some to accuse the party of hypocrisy on climate issues. The immense challenges meeting a 2040 net zero target will entail would be exacerbated by the Party’s hostility to nuclear power – a hallmark of green politics not just in Britain but abroad too. Despite having a “minimal carbon footprint” and making up 15% of the country’s energy mix, the Greens have said they want to completely phase out nuclear energy. This is incredibly ill-advised – similar policies in Germany have increased reliance on fossil fuels, leading to thousands of air-pollution-related deaths and hindering the country’s green transition.

The Greens’ climate ambitions have also frequently clashed with its support for environmental conservation – with the latter often winning out. Green Party local councillors have frequently opposed green infrastructure development, such as solar farms and pylons, due to concerns it will lead to a loss of greenery, with Green councillor Frank-Adlington Stringer suggesting Britain “shouldn’t be exchanging green energy for green spaces”. This anti-development posture is shared by the national Party – whose co-leader – Adrian Ramsay – recently argued opposing solar farm developments aligns with the Greens’ support for nature preservation.

There is value in the Green Party pressuring both major parties to be bolder on environmental and climate issues.

The Greens can continue chugging along with a platform laden with contradictions on climate issues, because with there being no realistic prospect of a Green government this upcoming election, the Party aren’t currently in a position where it must make the tough choices and trade-offs national policymaking inevitably involves.

That being said, many of the Party’s proposals, like a frequent flyer levy and higher green public investment, are clearly practical and deliverable – the only barrier to their implementation being a lack of political will. As such, there is value in the Green Party pressuring both major parties to be bolder on environmental and climate issues. It is clear Labour and the Tories aren’t taking the existential threat posed by global heating seriously enough, and a Green Party that gains seats and millions more votes at the upcoming election could go some way towards nudging them in the right direction – so long as they abandon their anti-development and anti-nuclear posturing that will inevitably hinder the green transition.