Sorry for the prolonged absence - after the madness of the last CI deadline I took a week off, but normal service will resume now.
The following letter appeared in the Guardian a couple of weeks ago. Does Ireland need a green bank too, or are the big banks' 'green funds' enough?
We agree that the chancellor should next week announce an investment bank to help build green business and infrastructure (Editorial, 17 March). Up to £750bn needs to be invested in low-carbon infrastructure, low-carbon energy and energy efficiency over the next two decades. This will only be achieved if a green infrastructure bank is set up in the public interest to help leverage and deploy private capital at the scale and speed required. This bank must have a clearcut mission to accelerate investment in the low-carbon economy. A general infrastructure bank without this primary mandate risks locking the UK into a high-carbon future. That would cause immense damage to our economic, energy and climate security.
Adrian Wilkes Environmental Industries Commission, Paul King Green Building Council, Gaynor Hartnell Renewable Energy Association, James Cameron Climate Change Capital, Peter Young The Aldersgate Group, Andy Atkins Friends of the Earth, John Sauven Greenpeace, Nick Mabey E3G, Stephen Hale Green Alliance, Andrew Simms New Economics Foundation, Sean Kidney Network for Sustainable Financial Markets, Jonathan Johns Climate Change Matters
