Richard Graham, Conservative parliamentary candidate for Gloucester, argues that the country does not have an industrial revolution to bail us out of the current economic recession (Citizen 13 Oct) but the point is, we could have - a green industrial revolution.

 In Gloucestershire alone, the County Council plans to lay off 200 staff by October next year and a further 300 after that (yet to be approved).  The way out of the recession and the rising unemployment is not to cut public spending – as all three major parties are saying – but to put more money into the economy.  The Green Party’s £44bn Green New Deal is a plan to slash emissions whilst creating a million new jobs to tackle the recession. 

 Britain could once again be at the forefront of industry in the production of hi-tech renewable alternatives, large-scale engineering projects such as combined heat and power, and offshore wind.  There is work in low-tech industries too: much of the housing stock in Gloucestershire is old and needs to be properly insulated and fitted with energy efficient systems. 

 The advantages of the massive scale of investment required for this energy transition are that a million jobs can be created, thousands of new and existing businesses and services will benefit, and a large increase in tax revenue will be generated for the government from this new economic activity.  That's the way to beat the recession.

 So it is not time to cut. Just a few Green MPs in the House of Commons would challenge the cuts agenda and the environmental half-heartedness of the 3 main parties.