Green campaigners and politicians must stop making people feel guilty if they want to change attitudes to action on climate change, the Science and Innovation Minister said yesterday.

Pessimistic messages about the personal sacrifices required to cut carbon emissions could alienate those whose support was essential to tackling the issue, Lord Drayson told The Times.

The austere rhetoric of environmentalists who lectured people for excessive driving or flying had convinced many that reducing the size of their carbon footprint was too much like hard work, he said. The prospect of a lower quality of life was unattractive.

“Less emphasis on telling people they have to stop doing many of the things they like — an almost puritanical argument that, for climate change to be addressed, growth has to stop and our quality of life has to decline. I don’t accept that. More importantly, it won’t work.”

Lord Drayson, speaking at The Times Cheltenham Science Festival , wants scientists, environmentalists and politicians to explain that many aspects of a greener lifestyle involve just small changes, come with few costs and might even save money.

Improvements to energy efficiency, such as home insulation, could help to lower carbon emissions —and reduce heating and electricity costs, he said. People were also very willing to take practical environmental steps, such as recycling rubbish, when they had the facilities to do so.

“I personally don’t believe it is going to be possible to persuade the vast majority of people to accept a poorer quality of life,” he said. “I do think it’s possible to convince people they will be able to maintain a standard of quality of life more sustainably.

“It’s about using what motivates people, it’s about marketing, tapping into that. It’s about motivating people because it’s the right thing to do, but also because it’ll improve their lives. It’s about investing in the framework, the infrastructure that enables people. If you’ve got the bins around that enable people to separate their rubbish, generally they will do it.”

Lord Drayson, who has raced competitively in the British GT Championship and the American Le Mans Series, said that he had been convinced of the need to be positive by the reaction of his competitors when his team switched to a sustainable biofuel in 2006. “The opposition thought we had all gone soft, we weren’t so serious about competing, this was some sort of save-the-planet kick,” he said. “They joked that my pre-race preparations involved overdosing on lentils.

“They didn’t quite get it until the first race, when we qualified on pole and won. The reaction was — wow, a car can be quick and green.”

Lord Drayson, who founded a pharmaceutical company before going into politics, said that the demands of reducing greenhouse emissions offered business opportunities — particularly in a recession. “New entrants have a bit of an advantage in that the market’s changing. People are looking for new solutions. Now is a good time to start. I want to encourage young people to think about starting their own business.

“If you’re a young person with drive, be a green entrepreneur.”

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