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Church crucified nationally over environmental double standards
South Tyneside Friends of the Earth has welcomed coverage in the new edition of the national news magazine Private Eye, which has printed an article called 'Chapter and Worse', where the magazine describes the Church's attempt to profit from the sale of greenbelt land at Fellgate, whilst at the same time calling on Christians to be more green.STFOE spokesperson Bryan Atkinson said:
"It's great to see this story hit the national press, which has been no doubt helped by the Gazette's reporting, particularly when many North East newspapers have failed to cover the danger to the environment presented by South Tyneside Council's plans for the Fellgate greenbelt. Private Eye has a long tradition of investigative journalism and this article is no exception.
"The Church has cynically suggested that building an industrial estate on the Fellgate greenbelt is a simple choice between green fields and jobs, when really it's a chance for the Church to make a quick buck out of the destruction of the greenbelt - a simple choice between cash and the environment. This is hardly compatible with the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams' statement that, "We make choices of moral significance and our relation to the environment is no exception."
"Hopefully this national coverage will prompt the Church to reconsider it's contradictory position on the Fellgate issue, make a 'choice of moral significance' and drop their support for the destruction of the Fellgate greenbelt."