Towards a green collar Europe - A million UK workers in environmental industries within the next two decades (07/05/2008)
On 8 May, Minister for Europe Jim Murphy MP and his French counterpart Jean-Pierre Jouyet will host a roundtable discussion on “Towards a Green Collar Europe - jobs and growth in a low carbon economy”.
Senior participants from business, civil society and trade unions will consider how Europe can boost employment and prosperity in the 21st Century by showing leadership on climate change. Issues for debate will include reform of the EU budget to deliver jobs and growth and designing a successor to the Lisbon strategy for jobs and growth.
Jim Murphy said:
“Countries that take early action in developing green technology will have a competitive advantage as this boom industry grows in the future. The Government is committed to making sure the UK is ahead of the pack – in the future we want an economy offering a mix of good blue collar jobs, good white collar jobs and good green collar jobs. Our aim is to have over a million UK workers in environmental industries within the next two decades.
The economic case for an urgent shift to low carbon is compelling. The Stern Review found that climate change will be more devastating than both of the World Wars and the Great Depression. Ignoring it could reduce global GDP by as much as 20%. By contrast, Stern estimates that if we act decisively now the benefits would be of the order of $2.5 trillion. A panel of experts commissioned by Gordon Brown has estimated that from water treatment to global carbon markets the UK's environmental industries are already worth more than £25 billion and that they already employ some 400,000 people.
It’s also about creating new jobs in the UK for workers with the right skills. Renewable energy programs in Germany and Spain are just ten years old but have already created hundreds of thousands of jobs. Germany is known for car giants like BMW, Mercedes and VW – but by 2020 it will have more jobs in the field of environmental technologies than in its entire car industry. We need to match and exceed their efforts.
Across Europe a 20 per cent increase in energy efficiency would create around a million jobs – I want as many as possible of those jobs to be created in the UK. But I also want to encourage our partners in Europe to do the same. The environment in general and climate change in particular demand effective international – and not just national – action, because pollution does not respect borders. As the world’s largest trading bloc and a unique example of countries working closely together, the EU is ideally placed to promote green jobs and growth and to act as a model to other countries around the world.
I’m particularly glad to be having this conversation in partnership with my French counterpart Jean-Pierre-Jouyet. President Sarkozy has shown strong leadership on climate change. France’s Presidency of the EU in the second half of this year offers real opportunities to drive forward the agenda, responding to the highest priorities of our citizens.”