Great to join groups from across the NorthEast as part of @Cop26A Coalition calling for real action from this Government, greenjobs for a greeneconomy & a voice for all communities impacted by this existential threat. – – –
So the UN climate summit, COP26, in Glasgow, is a critical moment for our planet and our country. The summit’s overriding objective must be to put the world decisively on course to deliver on the ambition of the Paris Agreement and keep alive the hope of limiting global heating to 1.5C.
Our credibility as COP President rests on the example we set at home. But despite the Government’s rhetoric, not only is the UK way off track to meet our legally binding net-zero target, we’re not even on track to meet the less ambitious one that preceded it.
While President Biden is pressing on with a $2.3 trillion green infrastructure plan and Germany and France are pouring tens of billions of euros into low-carbon plans, the Government’s have put forward just £4 billion of new funding.
It doesn’t come close to matching the scale of the jobs crisis or the climate emergency we face, and it is undermining the credibility of our COP Presidency.
With evidence of climate breakdown now abundant, the cost of renewables plummeting, and the economic and geopolitical context transformed over the past year, the government should look to push the limits of what’s possible in Glasgow, including by seeking international agreement on a managed and fair phasing out of fossil fuels across the globe.
What Labour will do
Labour has called for a Green Economic Recovery, which would put support people back into work and fend off recession in a way that will also contribute to tackling the climate emergency.
We called on Government to bring forward £30 billion in planned capital investment as part of a rapid stimulus package to support up to 400,000 new, clean jobs in manufacturing and other key sectors.
Accelerating investment in clean projects such as energy efficiency, flood prevention, offshore wind, cycling and walking infrastructure and the electric vehicle charging network would help to create secure, stable employment in every corner of the country right now.
A Labour government will replace this Government’s piecemeal climate policy, with a Green New Deal– a comprehensive plan for the transition to a low-carbon economy.
COP26 will be a critical moment in the fight against runaway global heating.
As the summit’s host, the UK has a particular responsibility to make it a success, and I will be fighting for this in Parliament.
Chi Onwurah MP: “There’s nothing more caring than saving the planet” :https://www.politicshome.com/thehouse/article/chi-onwurah-interview
And Ed_Miliband puts it so well:
