Dear Editor,

So winter is here and as the cold sets in, many of us are turning our thoughts to summer beach holidays already. The UK now has some of the cleanest beaches and rivers in Europe.

Some of your readers may remember that before we joined the EU we were known as the ‘Dirty man of Europe’ and anyone who swam in our seas then can testify to the pollution that we shared. But thanks to EU wide legislation the sea shores and rivers have been cleaned up. But what about the future without the comprehensive approach and funding from the EU?

Michael Gove has championed ‘taking back control’ by the British government, but what guarantees do we have that these environmental standards will be maintained after Brexit? Past evidence shows that when budgets are tight it’s the Environmental budgets that Conservatives cut first.

The British seaside is worth £7bn to our economy every year. We must not let Brexit damage this or the nations’ health.

Negotiations are still underway for our future relationship. The EU wants to see concrete commitments to environmental standards, so do I. I also want to have a say on whether that deal is acceptable to me, we were never asked what sort of Brexit we wanted, which is why I support the People’s Vote campaign. If for no other reason than for the state of our environmental protection.

James Moore
Liberal Democrat campaigner for Minster ward
22 Brunswick Street, Reading

   Leave a comment