The Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) called on the coalition government to do a complete review of all fiscal policies aimed at helping people more than two children.

To mark World Population Day Yesterday (July 11), CIWEM called for the Government to address the ‘complex linkages’ between population, consumption, poverty and sustainable development.

However, the call may fall on deaf ears among the new government’s leaders with prime minister David Cameron awaiting the birth of his fourth child – although his first son Ivan died in 2009 after rare combinations of illness – and his deputy, Nick Clegg, also has three children.

Regardless of that CIWEM executive director, Nick Reeves, said: “Climate change is a systemic effect of our economy, with year on year population and consumption growth equalling progress and GDP.

“As a supply-side fixated state, we have failed to understand that we need our level of efficiency gain to rise tenfold to offset the growth in our population and consumption.

“CIWEM condemns a lack of real leadership or mechanisms in place to help achieve a level of understanding in politicians that population x consumption x technology = impact.”

Luke Walsh

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