Manchester Friends of the Earth are urging local council and parliamentary candidates to let voters know their views on environmental issues.
The environmental organisation invited all local council candidates and prospective parliamentary candidates to take part in surveys which asked for their opinion on issues such as climate change such as air pollution, fracking and solar energy for schools.
Manchester Friends of the Earth are aware that the elected councilors and MPs will have to implement solutions to meet many social and environmental challenges throughout their term and hope their survey will help them to get their opinions across to the public.
Ali Abbas, coordinator for Manchester Friends of the Earth, said: “We wouldn’t dream of telling people which way to vote, but we believe that voters should have information from the candidates seeking election on key environmental issues that will affect all our lives.”
The candidates were also questioned relating to CO2 emissions, addressing traffic congestion and the rising costs of public transport.
Mr Abbas said: “As the Supreme Court decision on air pollution shows there is an urgent need for our elected representatives to tackle issues such as air pollution and climate change.”
Unsurprisingly, the Green Party lead the pack in supporting green issues. The only issue their local council candidates were unsure on was whether cars parking on pavements should be banned.
Seventy five Green local council candidates and 14 parliamentary candidates have responded to the survey so far.
Labour come in second with 15 local council candidates responding, while the Conservatives and UKIP are tied for last place with one candidate from each party responding.
Manchester Friends for the Earth are an award-winning environmental campaign group, raising awareness and lobbying for policy changes at a local, regional, national and international level.
They have endorsed Manchester: A Certain Future, an action plan for Manchester to cut its carbon emissions by at least 41% by 2020.
You can view up to date results for local council candidates by clicking here and parliamentary candidates by clicking here.
Picture courtesy of **Mary**, with thanks.
