This letter from Caroline Lucas was in the Guardian yesterday. I am sharing it as she is also a member of the Green New Deal Group, with me:
Two chilling reports this week from the World Meteorological Organization and the UN Environment Programme both show that carbon emissions haven't yet peaked, let alone begun the necessary decline needed to prevent climate chaos (UN urges drastic cut in emissions over next decade to avert disaster, 26 November).
The former government chief scientific adviser, Sir David King, was incredibly blunt about the implications, warning that we ought to be afraid, not least because of the potential sea level rise of one or two metres, which would mean London having to be moved to higher ground.
Particularly striking was Sir David's concern at the lack of political leadership to seriously tackle these problems. The Conservative manifesto was pitifully weak on ideas and spending plans to tackle the climate crisis. Take the crucially important area of our homes. The Tories promise a paltry £6.3bn to make them more energy-efficient, which will do next to nothing to tackle the crisis. Compare this with the hundreds of billions needed, and promised in the Green party's Green New Deal, to decarbonise every aspect of our economy and society over the next decade.
The country has already endured a decade of cruel Conservative austerity. We cannot afford to now add recklessness on climate to the social deprivation this has already created. The choice on 12 December is stark yet simple. If you are worried about the future of the planet, our nation's children and grandchildren and those around the world already affected by the climate crisis, then vote for a party that is committed to doing something about it. If not now, when?
Caroline Lucas
Green party parliamentary candidate for Brighton Pavilion
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Thank you for having published this climate emergency-related information. Still, too few organizations are actively involved in reporting the reality of climate crisis! In the USA, many (if not almost all) editors, publishers, and broadcasters would be either ignoring, negating, or trying to minimize (important!) WMO and UN Climate information. Now, urgently, all climate news (the reality of sea-level rise, the possibility of the necessity of relocating The City of London, etc.)
must be recognized as “front page”, and “top of the broadcast”.
So, many thanks to you, at taxresearch.org.uk and to The Guardian, and to Parliamentary Candidate Lucas.
I do feel that you do not appreciate the Prime Minister’s viewpoint. You would not expect an appointed Prime Minister to go against his personal, deeply held long term beliefs.
Johnson does not believe in Climate Change. Look, for example, at his Telegraph article https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/weather/12060976/I-cant-stand-this-December-heat-but-it-has-nothing-to-do-with-global-warming.html on the Paris Conference in 2015.
“It is fantastic news that the world has agreed to cut pollution and help people save money, but I am sure that those global leaders were driven by a primitive fear that the present ambient warm weather is somehow caused by humanity; and that fear — as far as I understand the science — is equally without foundation.”
To emphasize: “as far as I understand the science”. The article repeats standard denial points: “Maunder Minimum”, “It’s the sun”.
How can you expect Johnson to even turn up to a Climate Change debate? But no-one challenges him.
Ros
Well, at least we shall get rid of the awful Houses of Parliament – perhaps the dreadful traditions can go with them. And we could then have push-button voting.
Interesting story, and research. Can’t think of anything that can go wrong?
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-03679-x
Perhaps that will be the Northern Powerhouse that’s been talked about!
Powerhouse? It’s a gaslight, flickering its last in the cold and merciless night
Caroline Lucas says:
“If you are worried about the future of the planet, […] then vote for a party that is committed to doing something about it. If not now, when?”
That would be nice; to be able to do that, but for most people in most UK constituencies outside Scotland it’s not an option. What most voters actually have to do under our FPTP electoral system is vote against the worst party on offer.
All progressive parties need to have pulled their candidates in the constituencies where they cannot hope to win and will split the progressive vote. Some have done this, but ALL need to have done it. Sorry, Caroline. Too little too late.
If not now when ?
Voting for what we want will not be possible for large swathes of the electorate until the voting system has been modified to allow that. In the meantime we have to work as best we can with the system we’ve got and progressives are failing abjectly to do this. As they did in 2017, but have ignored the lesson.
The Green Party in Scotland is not the same as the Green Party in England and Wales
She can’t be held responsible for this one
I’m not worried about the situation in Scotland, Richard.
There will be tactical cross-party voting on unionist-indy lines again, but Brexit is not the issue and Scotland doesn’t have enough influence to keep a Tory government out of Westminster.
The problem is in rUK and progressive parties are not cooperating sufficiently. Added to that Labour, particularly and unaccountably, insult the SNP who should be regarded as natural allies. Sensible coordinated progressive alliance would have seen Labour in government since 2017 (with three years to go) and they choose to ignore that. It is deeply ironic that the SNP membership would, I think for the most part have been more supportive of Corbyn for the Labour leadership than were Scottish members of what is nominally his own party.
At bottom I guess Corbyn and McDonnell, having figured out how much the tax take from Scotland is worth are quaintly concerned not to lose it. They still believe tax take is where their revenue is going to come from, because they don’t pay attention.
Strange times indeed.
I deeply regret the tribalism found on the left
Under FPTP the Green Party in Scotland doesn’t stand a snowballs chance in hades of winning a seat, yet are standing candidates in most of the constituencies. By taking votes from the SNP this could well result in allowing a Labour/Tory win.
I’m not sure what Harvie expects to gain from this but it may rebound on him in 2021 if he’s expecting to ask for second vote Green.
Do we have to move London?
We didn’t move Atlantis or Ys.
🙂
James from Durham says:
“Do we have to move London?”
I don’t think so. We just arrange a population exchange with the folk from Lancashire and Cumbria who already have webbed feet 🙂
Even the wildcats of Cumbria have webbed feet, so I’m told , albeit this was at the World’s Greatest Liar competition at the Santon Bridge Inn in Wasdale. Lest anyone should think the the honour belongs to him please note that “Politicians and lawyers are not allowed to enter the competition, because “they are judged to be too skilled at telling porkies”. Sorry, Boris. You aren’t allowed to enter.
I was reading an article just the other day pointing out the extent of coastal erosion on much of our East coast. Cornwall, (Looe particularly was mentioned) where flooding is becoming a regular experience, parts of Wales around the Barmouth Estuary where Fairbourne is destined to return to salt marsh. Local authorities have virtually no prospect of being able to raise funding to create flood defences or rehouse populations in any of these areas without central government spending which is currently being denied in meaningful quantity.
I’ve been aware of the disappearance of the boulder clay North and East Yorkshire coast for many years, but I hadn’t realised this was such a problem already on the South West and West coasts.
They’ll worry when it is Sizewell
As surely it will be