Rising fuel prices and the threat of protests have created a lot of political controversy and have masked the fact that the real crisis facing us is not that of fuel prices but of climate change.

We need to reduce our dependency on oil, and the decision of oil producing nations to increase oil production is simply a solution to a short-term problem that ignores the long-term problem.

The Prime Minister recently described climate change as the biggest threat facing the world.

The Government must do more to get car manufacturers to make more fuel-efficient cars and increase the use of renewable bio-fuels derived from crops like oil seed rape (non-GM.).

It also needs to ensure that policies are implemented that will result in real alternatives to car use by increasing investment in public transport and making streets safer for cycling and walking.

Jo Ripley

Devizes & Marlborough Friends of the Earth

Hyde Lane

Marlborough