Southwark Green Party Responds to Southwark Council Climate Change Consultation
Southwark Green Party welcomed the declaration of a Climate Emergency by the London Borough of Southwark in March 2019 but councillors and council officers are not acting in a way that responds to the gravity of that declaration.
We call for action that recognises the emergency.
Southwark Green Party members have responded as individuals to the draft climate strategy, and some are also members of the council’s Partnership Steering Group (established in March 2020) and have contributed detailed comments on policy through that process. This response will not duplicate that work, but rather highlights some key failings of the draft strategy and these nine points that define how we would approach the task.
Read moreAsk Southwark Council to declare a climate emergency
We welcome action by the London Assembly, Lambeth Council, Bristol City Council and other city councils around the world declaring and committing resources to tackling the Climate Emergency and becoming carbon neutral by 2030.
Southwark Greens are petitioning Southwark Council to declare a Climate Emergency and review the council’s current carbon reduction plans to establish the actions needed to be compatible with 1.5 degrees warming and to bring the timescale forward from 2050 to 2030.
Further we ask the council to call on government and the Mayor of London to give Southwark Council the powers and funding to enable Southwark Council to become carbon neutral by 2030.
The IPCC’s Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C, published in October 2018, describes the enormous harm that a 2°C rise is likely to cause compared with a 1.5°C rise, and confirms that limiting Global Warming to 1.5°C may still be possible with ambitious action from national and sub-national authorities and others.
Please sign the petition and pass the link on to friends and neighbours.
No Heathrow Expansion
Legal action
Who says you can’t deal with climate change in court?
Jonathan Crow QC, Attorney General to HRH Prince of Wales, is one of the lawyers representing Plan B - a charitable organisation - and 11 citizens ranging in age from 9 to 79. They are challenging the UK government over its inaction on climate change. The legal challenge is supported by the Green Party.
Read moreWill our MPs oppose airport expansion?
We're asking our three Southwark MPs if they will oppose airport expansion - both to protect residents from noise and pollution and to combat climate change. The question has been asked in Southwark News and by individual members. We are still waiting for the MPs to let us know where they stand. If you live in Southwark, you can help by emailing your MP:
- Neil Coyle (Bermondsey and Old Southwark): neil.coyle.mp@parliament.uk
- Harriet Harman (Camberwell and Peckham): harriet.harman.mp@parliament.uk
- Helen Hayes (Dulwich and West Norwood): helen.hayes.mp@parliament.uk
Please remember to include your address, so that they know you live in their constituency.
No New Runways
On Thursday 22 December, Southwark Green Party member Tom Venner-Woodcock will appear at Ealing Magistrates Court. He was part of a group of 15 people who blockaded a road near Heathrow last month. His protest highlights the serious risks that airport expansion poses to Londoners' health and the global climate.
Read moreStand up for climate change report
On 9 November, less than 24 hours after the election of climate change denier Donald Trump, Green Party members from Southwark and Lambeth attended the annual Dulwich and West Norwood (DaWN) Speak Up for the Climate meeting, organised by DaWN MP Helen Hayes.
Read more