Labour pushes Parliament to declare climate emergency

Llanelli’s MP Nia Griffith was in Parliament last Wednesday (1^st May) to support Labour’s call for the UK Government to declare a climate and environment emergency.

Whilst the climate emergency motion was not supported by Conservative Government MPs, it was approved by the House of Commons, following a similar declaration by the Welsh Labour Government last month. This declaration was one of the key demands of the young Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and the Extinction Rebellion protest movement she has inspired.

Opening the climate emergency debate, Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn urged MPs to accept their “historic duty” and back Labour’s motion. He used his speech to make the case for “rapid and dramatic action” on social and environmental justice.

Nia Griffith MP said: “I am pleased that MPs backed our motion to declare a climate and environment emergency and made Britain the first country in the world to do so.

“A large number of constituents have written to me about climate change over the last few months. It is good to see this vital issue back on the political agenda after far too many years of it being side-lined by the Tory Government.

“This renewed interest is thanks in large part to the young Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, whom I was lucky to see when she came to give a powerful speech in Parliament, and the millions of people she has inspired to speak up about climate change and demand stronger action.

“Ministers are not doing anywhere near enough to prevent a climate disaster… Whether it is abandoning the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon, taking away financial support for renewable energy like onshore wind or pressing ahead with fracking in England, the UK Government has shown that, for them, climate change is not a priority.

“Luckily it is a priority for the Welsh Labour Government, which has banned fracking in Wales and is doing what it can to support renewable energy. But the sad reality is that we are not on track to meet the ambitious but necessary targets set out in the Climate Change Act 2008, which, as a life-long environmental campaigner, it was an honour to work on as part of the last Labour Government.

“We must once again treat this issue with the seriousness and urgency it deserves, and invest in the green technology, infrastructure and jobs of the future.”