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Public access is to improve to mountain, moor, heath and down and registered common land by the end of 2005.What they have delivered: An official audit last December found that the Government had succeeded in reversing the decline of bird populations. A strategy ministers believe could deliver a 23 per cent cut by 2010 was agreed four years ago, but the commission says road and air emissions are increasing and says a more ambitious reduction of 60 per cent is needed by 2050 to avert enviromental disaster.WildlifeWhat they have promised: The Government has pledged to improve biological diversity by reversing the decline in farmland birds by 2020. The Treasury’s targets include a pledge to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 12.5 per cent from 1990 levels on the way to a 20 per cent reduction by 2010.What they have delivered: UK greenhouse gas emissions fell by 15 per cent between 1990 and 2002, over the target in the Kyoto agreement. The cost is too high.” The 2001 manifesto made tackling climate change one of Labour’s 10 key goals for 2010. Planning for winter floods and summer droughts that may become more frequent with the advent of climate change does not appear to be very far advanced.Greenhouse Gas EmissionsWhat they have promised: The 1997 election manifesto said it was a government’s “duty” to tackle problems of climate change, insisting: “No responsible government can afford to take risks with the future. Water resources are already under pressure in the South and East of England, and proposed massive housing development in the most stressed regions will worsen that. The Commission concludes that traffic levels were rising “inexorably”, while rail services had not improved.River WaterWhat they have promised: Labour’s 2001 manifesto pledged they would give £8bn for water companies to clean up rivers and minimise damage from waste.

A programme approved by ministers recently alsoincludes action to tackle sewage overflows, protect wetland wildlife sites, control water leakage and curb phosphorus levels in lakes where its levels threaten serious ecological damage. In the manifesto, Labour also said it would invest more in protecting against coastal and inland flooding.What they have delivered: River water quality has generally been improving but pollution from agricultural sources remains a serious problem for the environment. Last year saw an increase in the number of days when air quality was average or higher.However, there are parts of the country where emissions of nitrogen dioxide and ozone may fail to meet targets by the end of the decade. There is increasing concern about the growth of respiratory diseases and possible links with allergens and pollutants found in homes and in ambient air.TrafficWhat they have promised: Ministers have promised to cut congestion on trunk roads and in urban areas to below the levels in 2000 by 2010. Labour’s 2001 manifesto promised upgraded motorways and 100 new bypasses, but promised that environmentally damaging road schemes would be scrapped.What they have delivered: Official statistics last month revealed traffic rose again last year, with an annual rise of between one and two per cent recorded since 1999. Last year, the respected Independent Transport Commission concluded that, if the Government’s present policies were pursued, motorists would face a 25 per cent increase in the volume of traffic during the next seven years.

The Air Quality Strategy, set in 2000, demanded reductions in eight key pollutants. Transport is one of the largest contributors to air pollution and the Government has introduced tax reductions on environment-friendly fuels.What they have delivered: Ambient air quality is improving in most areas in terms of many of the traditional pollutants of the atmosphere, according to the report. AIR QUALITY

Air quality
What they have promised: The Government aims to improve air quality by meeting the National Air Quality Strategy objectives for carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide, particles, sulphur dioxide, benzene and 1-3 butadiene. “Nobody would wish to argue for economic growth fuelled mainly by growth in drug trafficking or sexual exploitation.

But it is a much less mainstream view in relation to damage to the environment, particularly where the damage is long-term and not immediately perceived as related to short-term decisions.”The report, Shows Promise: But Must Try Harder, is available at . “Air and road transport are growing out of control, undoing the modest progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions elsewhere. Waste generation is growing faster than recycling, in which the UK is near the bottom of the European league table.”One of its central recommendations is that the Government’s definition of economic growth should be revised to account for environmental effects. There is insufficient grasp of the severity of the threat from climate change and the urgency of the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. At face value, they often show progress, but examined in detail, they often do not.The report criticises seveal individual policies. “The UK has failed to get a grip on consumption of environmental resources. He is a former director of Friends of the Earth and a leading member of the Green Party.