Tories are putting beauty into green policy

More than a decade since it was first inspired, the party has refound its environmental edge

Few speeches are all that memorable, even minutes after they’re delivered, but one in particular has always stuck in my mind. It was 2005 and Oliver Letwin, the then shadow environment secretary, declared that green policy should be seen as “nothing less than the achievement of beauty, both natural and man-made”.

It was an inspiring message – arguably the essence of green Conservatism – and now this emphasis on the value of beauty in all its forms is returning to government. In fact, it is emerging as one of the unifying themes within Michael Gove’s refreshed agenda as Environment Secretary, with exciting results. The Tories finally appear to be rediscovering a distinctive green edge.

Those of us who know our history recognise that Conservatives are not new to environmentalism. The UK’S Clean Air Act led the way globally. Conservation areas for our built environment were another success. Mrs Thatcher’s commitment to addressing climate change was a game changer, and our leadership on ozone depletion dragged countries and industries kicking and screaming to address a major global problem.

And today we see Theresa May going to Paris to President Emmanuel Macron’s climate change conference – something she might have been more reluctant to do a few months ago.

But Tories have been much less effective at articulating a coherent vision and this has cost us dearly, particularly with younger voters. In recent years, by looking at the issue solely through the prism of energy bills, Conservatives appeared to lack strong moral policies around climate change, the natural environment and air pollution.

Some critics reused Oscar Wilde’s quip by saying Tories knew “the price of everything and the value of nothing”. This was unfair. There have always been strong, moral “Turquoise Tories” but they were, as Gove admitted himself, “shy” – some very “shy”. So why do they now seem to be emerging across government? Dare we talk of “green shoots”?

Gove himself is part of the answer. He does have a moral focus to his policymaking and tapping into the Conservative instinct to pass on a more beautiful world to our children (he said recently “we need beauty in our lives as much as we need food and shelter”) is a particularly powerful message.

With quite a lot of help from David Attenborough, for example, addressing plastic waste is the new black, and microbeads will be banned as well as neonicotinoid pesticides. This might have surprised many on the Right of the Tory party, but has delighted many of his newfound friends in the environmental world.

The Government is expanding the “Blue Belt” of marine protected areas around the UK. It also appears that the Agriculture Bill will place the environment centre stage, particularly focused on soil fertility depletion – a hidden risk factor to food productivity.

The political stars are more aligned for a greener agenda, too. The mood in No10 has changed since the election; Philip Hammond has always been a strong advocate of the green economy, and the relationship that appears to be bearing the greatest political traction is between Defra and the Business Department.

There is still work to be done, and Conservative instincts can help. Waste will be one of the thornier issues for Gove, with a need to reframe the debate around what we lose by throwing so much away. Recycling and waste management – an £11billiona-year industry – is an enormous untapped opportunity, and re-using more could pay financial dividends, as well as improve the environment.

We’re not there yet on air pollution, either. A healthy environment means healthy people and normally delivers an even healthier economy.

But although the party has a long way to go before we are totally trusted with the environment, it is this refreshed vision, underpinned by Tory environmental values and increased political clout that is shaping a much more optimistic, proactive agenda to green and clean our policies, wherever they sit in Government.