Governor to address British party

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will address the annual conference of Britain’s Conservative Party, the party said Sunday, citing the California Republican’s commitment to the environment.

Conservative leader David Cameron has been attempting to reposition his party, once led by Margaret Thatcher and Winston Churchill, in the center, to the dismay of some of the Tory faithful. But the party, which last won a general election 15 years ago, has seen an increase in support in some polls. The British government is dominated by Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Labor Party.

Cameron has seized the environment as his party’s key issue. He changed the Conservative Party logo from a torch to a tree and has been photographed cycling to work at the House of Commons.

“Gov. Schwarzenegger led a dramatic revival of his party’s fortunes in California and as governor he has shown tremendous leadership -- above all in pioneering measures to protect the environment, reaching out to political opponents in doing so,” Cameron said in a statement.

“There’s a long history of the Republican Party in the U.S. and the Conservative Party in Britain working together on important issues,” said Adam Mendelsohn, the governor’s communications director. “There’s a new generation of leaders showing that protecting the environment brings economic strength and is in the tradition of the Conservative Party.”

The party conference will be Sept. 30 to Oct. 3 in Blackpool, in northwest England.