Think2050

On Monday 23rd May (earlier this week) two big speeches were given by important politicians in the UK.  Both the Leader of the opposition, Ed Miliband, and the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, spoke about the need to work for future generations and the responsibilities that one generation has to the next.

Ed Miliband spoke about The Promise of Britain and said:

“My belief is that we can and must create a better life for the next generation.

My concern, like millions of others, is that for the first time for more than a century, the next generation will struggle to do better than the last.

In the past we took it for granted that if we worked hard, if our children worked hard, they would be more prosperous, and have greater opportunities.

But the last few decades have begun to show that the promise to the next generation, the promise to our children, what I call the promise of Britain, cannot now be taken for granted.”

Nick Clegg was speaking about the Green Investment Bank and stated:

“We have an obligation to consider the impact of our actions not only on the people close to us today, but on people everywhere tomorrow. Justice must be done between generations, as well as within a particular generation. That is why, in another area of policy, I am working so hard on social mobility, to ensure that the next generation has better chances than the one before.

Tackling climate change, like boosting social mobility, is a long-term challenge. So one of the biggest questions facing politicians today is: how do we get better at tackling long-term problems, rather than taking the easy route and leaving them to future governments?”

This is very promising language from the top levels of Government and the Opposition here in the UK.  The important thing is that defending the interests of young and future generations does not become party political, but continues to be pushed up the agenda of all politicians, no matter what party they are from or what their ‘colours’ are.