This week saw the Conservative Party embark on a climate climbdown, with a succession of u-turns which could have a hugely damaging impact on our bills, our economy and our environment.

Hurriedly announcing the changes after a leak the previous evening, Rishi Sunak delivered one of the most inept speeches I’ve seen from a Prime Minister, bizarrely combining the dishonesty of Boris Johnson with the delusion of Liz Truss.

Here was a Prime Minister with no mandate, desperately trying to buy himself some political capital and putting his short-term political needs of the moment ahead of the long-term interests of our country.

Some people will wonder why Rishi Sunak chose to declare major changes to economic and environmental policy on the first day of the largest strike in NHS history, rather than showing the leadership to try and resolve it. Others will ask why he waited until Parliament went on recess and why he wasn’t confident enough in his own plans to open them up to proper scrutiny. Nearly everyone was baffled at his decision to make up policies just to say he’s ‘banned them’.

It all points to a Prime Minister that is distracted, with no real purpose or direction, and who isn’t really in control of his Government or his Party.

Leaving aside the environmental implications, the reality is that people won’t feel any easing of their energy bills in the short-term, and are more likely to experience increased costs further down the line. Rishi Sunak will hope that pretending to ease the cost-of-living crisis – rather than actually doing so – will boost his sinking premiership today, knowing he won’t have to deal with the consequences in the future.

It will come as another hammerblow to an industry where confidence was already fragile. The announcement provoked a furious reaction, not least Ford, who said that they need ‘three things from the UK government: ambition, commitment and consistency’, and a range of businesses have repeatedly warned that the UK is at risk of being left behind in the global energy race. Lower energy bills, good jobs, Britain’s energy security – all are now being gambled away for political expediency.

Ten years ago, David Cameron’s pledge to ‘get rid of the green crap’ saw a number of environmental measures scrapped, including on home insulation. We are now suffering from the fallout of this decision, with the UK having one of the worst insulated housing stocks in Europe, adding on hundreds of pounds to our energy bills. We may well look back on this as Rishi Sunak’s ‘green crap’ moment, with the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) estimating that cancelling energy efficiency regulations for the private rental sector could cost households almost £8 billion in higher bills over the next decade.

I know Ipswich and Britain have more hope for the future than Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives. People do not believe that a sticking plaster, ‘do nothing’ approach is working for anyone anymore. Whether it’s our crumbling schools, spiralling waiting lists or a justice system unable to deliver justice, we know we can’t carry on the way we are.

I know we have the talent and ambition to meet our environmental targets and achieve greater economic prosperity in parallel. In fact, the two things go hand in hand. A bit more money in our pockets; decent, secure, well-paid jobs; warmer homes; a cleaner, healthier environment for the next generation; a secure Britain, proud to be leading on the world stage – those are the prizes on offer.

If Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives can’t even aspire to achieve that, then they should call a General Election, and make way for a Labour Party that wants our country to succeed.