'This year we can make a real difference to the environment by making every effort to recycle the vast amount of waste we produced over the festive period.'

David Ruffley MP is to meet with managers and staff at the Bury St Edmunds branch of Tesco to recycle Christmas cards on Friday 13 January 2006 at 2.30pm.

David Ruffley receives hundreds of Christmas cards, both personally and professionally, from people across the UK and the World. David will be recycling his cards as part of the Woodland Trust initiative aiming to recycle 60 million Christmas cards across England.

Over the festive period it is estimated that in the UK we:

• Sent around one billion Christmas cards.

• Wrapped our presents in more than 50 square miles of wrapping paper.

• Emptied more than 20 million glass jars and bottles.

David is a staunch supporter of environmental issues and has ensured that the vast majority of paper waste from both his Westminster and Constituency Offices is recycled.

David said:

'Dealing with environmental issues responsibly is one of the biggest challenges facing the country today. This isn't about national politics it is about each and every one of us doing our bit to improve the environment and quality of life for future generations.

'This year we can make a real difference by making every effort to recycle the vast amount of waste we produced over the festive period.

'The campaign by the Woodland Trust aims to recycle 60 million cards and beat the record set in 2005 when 58 million cards were recycled.

'I look forward to meeting with staff at Tesco in Bury St Edmunds as we recycle our Christmas cards and I urge my constituents across Suffolk to do their bit for the environment and recycle those cards they would otherwise throw away.

'Together we can start 2006 on a positive note and begin to address the environmental issues that are so vital to our future.'