A CONSERVATIVE government would not introduce a “green” tax, according to the deputy chairman of the party’s commission on the environment.

Zac Goldsmith, the son of the late Sir James Goldsmith and Editor of Ecologist magazine, who was appointed by David Cameron after he became leader, said that good environmental policy was not about raising taxes or increasing regulations but “shifting emphasis”. “Most environmentalists would come out with a huge increase in taxes,” he added. “I don’t agree. The Conservative Party doesn’t like forcing people to do anything and I don ’t think we have to — most of the obstacles are from bad governance.”

The best way to reduce the country’s dependence on oil and decrease greenhouse gas emissions was to make people aware of the importance of buying local food and introducing energy-efficiency savings in the home.

“The idea that we should depend on imports for food is madness. Why do we sell as much poultry meat to the Netherlands as they sell to us? There is a perversion that favours ever-increasing distance between producers and consumers.”

Changing every light bulb to an energy-efficient variety would save as much energy as is produced by 1½ power plants, and installing roof insulation would save households as much as £170 a year. “No one thinks they’re going to change the world by switching their light bulbs, but if they knew you could push a button and make all houses change, everyone would push it. The Government has to make that button.”

Mr Goldsmith, who said that he was warned by fellow environmentalists not to “get into bed” with the Conservative Party because of its poor record on the environment, added: “I can’t think of a single government with a good track record. If there is a 10-1 shot that they’d accept what we come up with, those are bloody good odds.”

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