With the Conservative leadership race down to the final two candidates, the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) has written to the local grass-roots Conservatives who will vote the new Prime Minister into power, urging them to hold the candidates to account over the environment.

BBOWT’s Chief Executive Estelle Bailey has sent letters to the chairmen of local Conservative Party Associations in the three counties, urging them to push the final candidates to present bold ideas for improving the environment. It follows similar letters to the region’s MPs earlier this month, to remind them of the party’s promise to leave our natural world in a better state for the next generation.

Under Conservative Party rules, anyone who has been a member of the party for three months can vote in the final ballot between Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, meaning local association chairs can have a significant influence on who becomes the next Prime Minister. What's more, the Wildlife Trust has more than 50,000 members - a significant proportion of the local voting population, and of some importance to the party.

Estelle Bailey, Chief Executive of BBOWT, said:
"The next leader of the Conservative Party will arrive at a critical moment in the fight to tackle climate change and halt the ongoing decline in nature: once-common wildlife species are now on the brink of extinction, pollution continues to affect our rivers, land, and sea, and the recent weather has reminded us of the severe impacts of climate change.

“The cost of not tackling the nature and climate crisis head on, immediately, would be huge for our economy and community. We need nature as much as it needs us, for our mental and physical health and wellbeing, for our livelihoods and for our economy.

"That is why we are urging all local members of the Conservative Party to ensure that the nature and climate crises are at the top of the agenda during this election and, in the months and years to come, that they hold their new leader to account over the environment."

In her letter, Ms Bailey said that BBOWT had welcomed the Conservative Party's environmental pledges in its 2019 election manifesto, which had the aim of developing 'the most ambitious environmental programme of any country on Earth'.

Under Boris Johnson, the Government gave its backing to the Wildlife Trusts' '30 by 30' campaign to protect 30 per cent of the UK's land for nature by the year 2030.

However, even with those commitments in place, the Wildlife Trusts, including BBOWT, still say crucial further actions are needed to tackle climate change, reverse species declines and better protect wildlife in this country.

The letter concluded: "With polling consistently showing high levels of public support for ambitious environmental action, I hope that during the course of the leadership campaign you will encourage the two candidates to present bold ideas for improving the environment and leaving the unique natural heritage of our area in a better state for the next generation."