Olivia Blake MP: Climate Timeline

• Timeline
• Votes
• Speeches
• Tweets
• Contact

Olivia Blake's Climate-related Tweets, Speeches & Votes

We've found the following climate-related tweets, speeches & votes by Olivia Blake

• 25 Nov 2024: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: COP29 was a step forward in the fight against the climate crisis. The deal is not everything we or others wanted, but is… [Source]

• 17 Sep 2024: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: The @ClimateAPPG has called for the restoration of the UK climate envoy role for the past year. We welcome @DavidLammy's… [Source]

• 29 Jul 2024: Tweet

  ????Delighted that the first bill introduced under this government will bring our railways back into public ownership. Our railways should serve passengers, not profit, and help build the infrastructure needed to green our society and reach net-zero. https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1817943818072727697/photo/1 [Source]

• 26 Jul 2024: Parliamentary Speech

  Not a day goes by when the consequences of our inaction are not hideously illustrated. The wildfires in Canada today should shock us all into action, with 25,000 people having been displaced from their homes. The previous Government continually poured fuel on the fires of the climate crisis, entrenching our reliance on volatile international markets, but this Government have plans to totally turn the corner.

  Full debate: Making Britain a Clean Energy Superpower

• 24 Jul 2024: Tweet

  I was delighted to join @ActionAidUK's event in Parliament yesterday. Women and girls are disproportionately impacted by the climate crisis but are excluded from environmental leadership. Gender equality and climate action are inseparable - we must tackle both together. https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1816133861371195499/photo/1 [Source]

• 18 Jul 2024: Tweet

  I was pleased to speak in the King’s Speech debate yesterday. Greening our transport & energy infrastructure are key to meeting our climate goals, but we must also protect vital ecosystems, restore habitats, & safeguard species to effectively combat the climate crisis. ???????? https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1813962922454048945/video/1 [Source]

• 17 Jul 2024: Parliamentary Speech

  Particularly in the global south, but increasingly in the UK, we are living through the consequences of climate catastrophe, and it is the poorest in society who are often suffering the worst of its effects. The new agenda for this Government is a key opportunity to get back on track and prove, as we did once previously with the Climate Change Act 2008, that the UK can be a true climate leader. The measures outlined in the King’s Speech underscore the Government’s commitment to tackling the climate emergency. They are not only words, but the green shoots of change, ending 14 years of Conservative-led indifference and even hostility to environmental policy—14 years that saw an effective ban on onshore wind, a standstill on solar and little to nothing on tidal or green hydrogen.

  While other countries around the world have been racing ahead to capitalise on the jobs and wealth that the clean energy transition offers, Britain has been missing out, but today marks a new chapter. The Government’s plan to make Britain a green energy superpower, achieving clean power by 2030, is ambitious and represents a clear commitment to reducing carbon emissions and embracing renewable energy sources. It presents a significant opportunity to stimulate economic growth, address the cost of living crisis and make Britain energy independent, with Great British Energy, owned by the British people, ensuring that families and businesses benefit from permanently lower bills through a zero-carbon energy system. It is right that that will be funded by closing loopholes in the windfall tax on oil and gas companies. They have reaped enormous profits not because of their innovation or investments, but because of the energy shock that has burdened families across the country with higher prices. The Great British Energy Bill will end the Conservative dash for oil and gas, deliver real energy security and put the UK on a path to being a clean energy superpower, with a just transition for workers.

  The plan to take train operating companies back into public ownership will end a decade of Conservative chaos, develop the infrastructure we need to green our society and make the transition to net zero, and give people a real alternative to getting into their cars. New powers to allow communities to take back control of their buses will put decision making back into their hands, where it belongs—not with the private companies, but with the people the transport system should be serving.

  Greening our transport and energy infrastructure is central to meeting our climate ambitions, but we cannot effectively combat the climate crisis without simultaneously protecting our vital ecosystems, restoring habitats and safeguarding our species. The climate crisis has accelerated the nature crisis, with the UK now one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. We must and can do better. Protecting nature must take equal priority to cutting emissions. For too long, Britain’s coasts, rivers and lakes have been polluted by illegal sewage dumping, and it is therefore right that this Government are committed to placing failing water companies under special measures, withholding bonuses from executives who pollute our waterways and bringing criminal charges against persistent lawbreakers. I am very pleased to see that there will be strengthened regulation, which is very welcome to many in my constituency who have campaigned on this issue.

  Full debate: Debate on the Address

• 24 Jun 2024: Tweet

  "If you want the NHS to be fixed, the cost of living crisis to be tackled. If you want a champion who will make sure we tackle the climate emergency - vote for Olivia, vote for Labour." Thank you to @SadiqKhan for endorsing our campaign in Sheffield Hallam! ???????? https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1805235704928072158/video/1 [Source]

• 02 Jun 2024: Tweet

  I’m taking real action on the climate emergency and green spaces. ???? https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1797236729864507899/video/1 [Source]

• 23 May 2024: Tweet

  After fourteen years of Tory mismanagement, it's time for change. We have an opportunity to elect a Labour Government that will rebuild our economy and tackle the climate crisis. Join us! ???? https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1793708031366004884/photo/1 [Source]

• 21 May 2024: Tweet

  I was delighted to chair @FestofDebate's panel on the Green New Deal and cost of living crisis. There is no question that the climate emergency & cost-of-living crisis go hand in hand. It’s time for government to deliver a just transition for a cheaper, cleaner energy future.???? https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1792839882450071564/photo/1 [Source]

• 20 May 2024: Tweet

  ????Happy #WorldBeeDay ???? Bees are vital in helping to improve biodiversity and mitigate climate change. But worryingly, they are declining in abundance & diversity. We need a Climate and Nature Bill to protect our buzzing friends! #SaveTheBees [Source]

• 16 May 2024: Tweet

  Delighted to be on the @TheENDSReport Power List 2024???????? I'm proud to be a political changemaker and will continue to champion a just transition, climate action and nature restoration. https://twitter.com/TheENDSReport/status/1790347427800608918 [Source]

• 15 May 2024: Parliamentary Speech

  One of the key issues on which the Government are failing is land management. My constituency opens out into the Peak district and several peatland habitats. Peatlands have been called Britain’s rainforests, with landscapes covering 15% of the UK. Healthy peatlands are rare, fragile ecosystems that are home to an abundance of wildlife. As a species champion for the hen harrier, I could talk about raptor persecution for my whole speech, but I want to focus on the importance of landscapes. They are also carbon sinks, storing more carbon than all the forests in the UK, France and Germany put together. Damaged peatlands release carbon into the atmosphere and water, emitting the same amount annually as the UK’s entire aviation industry and deepening the climate emergencies.

  Full debate: Biodiversity Loss

• 15 May 2024: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: NEW: To re-establish the UK as a climate leader, the @ClimateAPPG calls for @RishiSunak to: ⛔️End “maxing out” North Sea… [Source]

• 13 May 2024: Tweet

  ????ICYMI I was pleased to speak at @FestofDebate on Clean Air Zones last month. We all have the right to clean air and health. Climate change is not an issue for the future - we already face its effects in the here and now. You can watch the full event here ???? https://twitter.com/granthamcsf/status/1788948861643313293 [Source]

• 25 Apr 2024: Tweet

  From climate change to deep sea mining, overfishing and pollution, our oceans are under threat like never before. The UK must urgently ratify the Global Ocean Treaty if we are to stay on track with the global goal of protecting at least 30% of the world's oceans by 2030. https://twitter.com/GreenpeaceUK/status/1783419258002702395 [Source]

• 22 Apr 2024: Tweet

  We can’t solve the climate crisis without saving our key ecosystems, restoring habitats, and protecting our much beloved species. This #EarthDay I'm proud to back @zerohour_uk’s #CANBill and help put nature on the road to recovery.???????? https://twitter.com/zerohour_uk/status/1782317702318583979 [Source]

• 16 Apr 2024: Parliamentary Speech

  Last year, the Government promised that they would publish their decarbonisation plan by the end of 2023, but they have failed to do so. Is that because the Secretary of State is too embarrassed to admit the truth? She is way off track, even for delivering clean power by 2035, because she has bungled the offshore wind auction, is failing on energy efficiency and refuses to end the onshore wind ban. Is it not the case that she wants to attack Labour’s plan because she cannot defend her own?

  Full debate: Oral Answers to Questions

• 09 Apr 2024: Tweet

  I had a great time talking to Jane and Edan from @theELN about why climate change is such an important issue to the people I talk to in Sheffield Hallam, and the creation of the Hallam Citizens' Climate Manifesto. Listen to the full episode here ???? https://www.europeanleadershipnetwork.org/commentary/ok-doomer-the-never-podcast-climate-change-a-hot-topic/ [Source]

• 22 Mar 2024: Tweet

  Today is World Water Day. The climate crisis is creating a water crisis, so it was great to speak to @WaterAidUK this week about prioritising water in climate adaptation. https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1771223787255574537/photo/1 [Source]

• 14 Mar 2024: Tweet

  RT @PositiveMoneyUK: Great to see @_OliviaBlake asking the government about food price inflation caused by climate change. Just today, @BB… [Source]

• 23 Feb 2024: Tweet

  We must now move forward, push for more action to tackle the climate crisis, and make the UK a true climate leader again. You can see more of my campaigning on this issue here ???? https://www.oliviablake.org.uk/2023/06/29/the-energy-charter-treaty/ [Source]

• 23 Feb 2024: Tweet

  The ECT posed an immense risk to Climate Change Act targets by allowing fossil fuel companies to sue governments for profits lost due to climate action. Last year I spoke in the chamber calling on the Government to leave the treaty - https://twitter.com/_oliviablake/status/1630590484904067073 [Source]

• 20 Feb 2024: Tweet

  The Government are pushing ahead with the Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill despite warnings that it will do nothing to fulfil our climate targets. Rather than drilling for more fuel to pour on the climate emergency, we need the real security of a sprint to renewables. [Source]

• 12 Feb 2024: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: Government delays ‘essential’ energy summit despite 1.5°C warning @theipaper "By doubling down on new oil and gas, delay… [Source]

• 06 Feb 2024: Tweet

  Last month I led on a Westminster Hall Debate on Heather Burning on Peatlands. Rather than destroy and degrade our peatlands, their restoration is key to mitigating against the effects of the climate emergency. It’s time for an outright ban ???? https://parliamentnews.co.uk/heather-burning-is-bad-for-the-environment-bad-for-the-climate-crisis-and-bad-for-the-health-of-people-its-time-for-an-outright-ban [Source]

• 29 Jan 2024: Tweet

  Drilling for more fossil fuels won’t help us - ❌ Cut carbon ❌ Restore nature ❌ Reduce energy bills ❌ Or guarantee jobs It’s time the government ditched the Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill & started planning a just transition to renewables instead???? https://leftfootforward.org/2024/01/olivia-blake-mp-rather-than-drilling-for-more-fuel-to-pour-on-the-climate-emergency-its-time-for-the-real-security-of-a-sprint-to-renewables/ [Source]

• 23 Jan 2024: Parliamentary Speech

  Burning not only damages the ecosystem that supports an abundance of wildlife, but is bad for the climate. In the natural and rewetted state, peatlands have the potential to store carbon dioxide on a large scale and can be a vital asset for helping us decarbonise our country, but when they are degraded, they do the exact opposite. Nationally, the damage means that our peatlands emit the equivalent CO 2 of 140,000 cars per year; the burns themselves release 260,000 tonnes of CO 2 annually. The burning also makes the effects of the climate crisis worse, because when the heather is burnt, the fire kills off the spongy sphagnum moss underneath that acts as a natural barrier to rain run-off. One expert described the moss to me as a Persian carpet—it is very absorbent; you can squeeze it, and if you jump up and down on a healthy bog, someone 20 metres away will be able to feel the vibration because of the water held in the moss. It is very rare to find that in the UK now.

  Losing the moss means that we often see down-valley flooding, which will become more and more likely if that environment is not protected and restored. If we want to slow the flow, a good place to start would be by maintaining the sphagnum moss and making sure that it is in good condition to do the job that it has evolved to do. Global heating means that our winters are getting wetter, and we are already beginning to see the effects in floods up and down the country. Rather than destroying natural flood defences, we need to protect them to ensure that we mitigate the worst effects of the climate emergency.

  The latest Climate Change Committee progress report on reducing UK emissions says that restoration of peatlands is already significantly off track compared with the CCC’s balanced pathway. In 2022-23, the overall amount of UK peatlands restored was a measly 12,700 hectares. Although that is an increase on the previous year, to meet next year’s target of 29,000 hectares will require more than a doubling of the current rate. Even if the Government match that target, the CCC recommends a UK-wide rate of 67,000 hectares per year by 2025.

  Heather burning is bad for the environment, bad for the climate crisis and, as the recent burns in my constituency have graphically illustrated, bad for the health of people in Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam in particular. I hope the Minister will consider a complete ban on burns and offer a comprehensive, joined-up plan to restore these habitats. I am proud to say that I have the support of our Mayor, Oliver Coppard, and the leader of Sheffield City Council, Tom Hunt, who have both been outspoken on their wish to see a further ban.

  Full debate: Heather Burning on Peatlands

• 23 Jan 2024: Tweet

  Burning also exacerbates the climate and nature crises, and our lack of healthy bogs is making down-valley flooding more frequent and worse. We need to protect natural flood defences like our peatlands to mitigate the worst effects of the climate emergency. https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1749867556406505615/video/1 [Source]

• 08 Jan 2024: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: ????NEW: Over the weekend, @ClimateAPPG MPs and Peers wrote to @ClaireCoutinho to call on the government to withdraw the Offs… [Source]

• 06 Dec 2023: Tweet

  2/2 Ahead of COP26 people in Sheffield Hallam drew up a plan for #climateaction - so in the absence of a government willing to act, we could build our vision of a green recovery. Two years later, these policies & principles have never been more urgent???????? https://www.oliviablake.org.uk/2021/10/19/our-hallam-citizens-climate-manifesto/ [Source]

• 06 Dec 2023: Tweet

  The President of #Cop28 thinks there is "no science" behind fossil fuel phase out. And our PM thinks the climate emergency is only worth a day of his time. If the last week has told us anything, it's that the transition must be led by those on the frontlines of this crisis 1/2 [Source]

• 30 Nov 2023: Tweet

  RT @StopCambo: World leaders are gathering at #COP28, but true climate justice will only be delivered by people power. ????Join the Global Da… [Source]

• 09 Nov 2023: Tweet

  COP28 is just weeks away and the Government still hasn't appointed a climate envoy. Instead, they've announced plans for even more fossil fuel licenses. Ahead of the conference, I joined over 50 cross-party MPs to write to the PM with 5 key recommendations for climate action. https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1722614775279210588/photo/1 [Source]

• 07 Nov 2023: Tweet

  The #KingsSpeech should’ve tackled the climate/nature crises. Instead the government announced annual bids on oil & gas exploration. That won’t lower bills or provide energy security ????????️ It’s past time for a real net-zero plan, #GreenNewDeal, & just transition to renewables ???? [Source]

• 06 Nov 2023: Tweet

  Charles III opens Parliament for the first time tomorrow. This is the #KingsSpeech we need to hear. The #CEBill is our last, best chance for legislation to restore nature and deliver a just transition that leaves no one behind. Back @cebill_now https://www.zerohour.uk/back-the-bill/ https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1721460096377467378/video/1 [Source]

• 09 Oct 2023: Tweet

  Moorland burning is a dangerous, destructive practice. Every year, 260,000 tonnes of CO2 are released from burning on peat in England. It also has incredibly worrying public health impacts. We urgently need to see a ban, our lungs protected and our peatlands restored. https://twitter.com/GDRNorminton/status/1711317127800447382 [Source]

• 06 Oct 2023: Tweet

  ???? Labour Conference #LPC23 delegates! ???? ???? For the climate and ecological emergency to be debated in Liverpool, it has to be voted through the priorities ballot. ????️ Make sure you vote for 'Climate change & ecology' in the priorities ballot. https://www.zerohour.uk/vote_climate_ecology/ [Source]

• 05 Oct 2023: Tweet

  Looking forward to chairing this event with @cebill_now at Labour Party Conference!⚡️ We’re in a climate and ecological emergency. Only the #CEBill can help deliver a just transition to a zero carbon, nature positive future for workers, communities, climate and nature. https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1709880353157009573/photo/1 [Source]

• 27 Sep 2023: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: ????NEW: The Rosebank oil field has been approved. Over 50 @ClimateAPPG MPs and Peers urged the UK govt not to do this. Gr… [Source]

• 22 Sep 2023: Tweet

  RT @BethWinterMP: The PM has watered down Net Zero commitments to keep you paying the profits of polluters. But we know retrofitting and r… [Source]

• 21 Sep 2023: Tweet

  With the Prime Minister watering down the Government's (already inadequate) net zero plans, the need for the #CEBill has never been more urgent. The CE Bill must be included in the next King's Speech if No. 10 are serious about securing a liveable future https://www.politicshome.com/thehouse/article/climate-ecology-bill-best-chance-tackling-climate-crisis [Source]

• 20 Sep 2023: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Rishi Sunak's panicked net zero speech is crumbling in the face of opposition from industry, the public, and his own MPs.… [Source]

• 20 Sep 2023: Tweet

  They want us to think it's a choice between taking climate action or saving people money. They're wrong. A just transition means polluters pay - not the people. Instead of scrapping climate policy we must tax the profits of energy giants to fund a transformative Green New Deal. https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1704492610172166188/photo/1 [Source]

• 13 Sep 2023: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: The UK is at serious risk of falling behind in the international race for good green jobs. Shouldn't the govt be doing mo… [Source]

• 05 Sep 2023: Tweet

  During the Committee Stage, I tabled my own amendment calling for the UK to leave the climate-wrecking Energy Charter Treaty. To still be committed to a Treaty which undermines our own Climate Change Act targets is absurd. You can read more here: https://www.oliviablake.org.uk/2023/06/29/the-energy-charter-treaty/ [Source]

• 05 Sep 2023: Tweet

  We are in a climate emergency. We are also facing the worst cost of living crisis in decades. The #EnergyBill was our opportunity to tackle these issues head on - providing affordable energy to all, whilst speeding up our transition. Yet again the Tories failed on all fronts???? https://twitter.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1699146429095371108/video/1 [Source]

• 03 Aug 2023: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: ????NEW: More than 50 MPs and Peers have written to @grantshapps urging him not to approve the Rosebank oil field. Green li… [Source]

• 29 Jul 2023: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: The cost of living crisis can only be beaten by tackling the climate crisis. That’s what Labour’s Green Prosperity Plan w… [Source]

• 27 Jul 2023: Tweet

  ???? "No more hesitancy, no more excuses, no more waiting for others to move first. There is simply no more time for that." We need to rapidly transition from fossil fuels and usher in a renewable energy revolution. We need a green new deal now! https://twitter.com/Channel4News/status/1684587047313440768 [Source]

• 26 Jul 2023: Tweet

  RT @ClimateAPPG: ????NEW: Yesterday the @ClimateAPPG urged @RishiSunak to restore UK climate leadership. The Prime Minister must: ????????Attend… [Source]

• 19 Jul 2023: Tweet

  Pleased to have been elected as Vice Chair of the @ClimateAPPG. I am looking forward to working with colleagues across Parliament to campaign for the transformative, democratic and just transition we so urgently need. https://twitter.com/ClimateAPPG/status/1681295463897522176 [Source]

• 19 Jul 2023: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Businesses are sounding the alarm ???? The Conservatives have given up on climate leadership Their failure means higher ene… [Source]

• 11 Jul 2023: Tweet

  RT @UNBiodiversity: What does ecosystem restoration really mean? From countering the climate crisis to preventing biodiversity loss – chec… [Source]

• 28 Jun 2023: Tweet

  Today, hundreds of steelworkers marched on Parliament ✊ Domestic steel is vital to reaching net zero, but all we have seen from this Government is a lack of ambition, vision, and political will. We need a Government that recognises #WeNeedOurSteel https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1674111059563511812/photo/1 [Source]

• 28 Jun 2023: Tweet

  The day after the 4th anniversary of the UK setting netzero in law, & on the morning of the damning CCC report, the Government is still refusing to rule out opening a new oil field. Rosebank won't reduce bills or ensure energy security. It will only speed up climate catastrophe https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1674064443385466880/video/1 [Source]

• 28 Jun 2023: Tweet

  RT @theCCCuk: We’ve published our latest assessment of progress in reducing UK emissions. The Committee has again flagged the risks of a po… [Source]

• 27 Jun 2023: Parliamentary Speech

  It has been an interesting discussion. “Maximum economic recovery” might sound like three benign words, but they could be a toxic combination. If we are not careful, they could be rephrased as “maximum economic crisis”. The climate catastrophe that will unfold if we do not cap global warming at 1.5°, and maintain that on average over 20 years, will be incredibly tough for any Government and for everyone internationally. Some reports suggest that if we wait 10 years, it will not take 1% of GDP to tackle the climate emergency; that will jump staggeringly. About 8% of GDP expenditure will have to go on resilience alone, and dealing with the consequences of the climate catastrophe. The cost of changing to a green energy system in that same decade would double as well. It is really important that we understand what that means.

  Stranded assets are really important in this debate. A report in 2022 suggested that the oil, gas and fossil fuel industry had £1.4 trillion of stranded assets. That means that there will be a cliff edge for jobs. There will be assets that people can no longer use or get value from. It will mean that we have barrels of oil, gas and coal that we cannot use, because—a very senior scientist makes this argument in the report—the world will have moved on. We hope that the world will move on as a result of the Bill; if we do not scale up net zero measures, UK households could be spending £500 a year on foreign gas, rather than saving £1,500-odd through a move to renewables and energy efficiency policies, and retrofitting.

  This is an incredibly important point. We cannot just hope that things will get better, and squeezing every last drop out of the North sea is not compatible with our aim of 1.5°. We cannot set a date for getting to net zero, but then produce as much carbon and other greenhouse emissions as we like and hope for the best. There must be carbon budgeting, as we all know. We have had all this conversation about a just transition, yet we are giving massive tax breaks. For example, if Rosebank goes ahead, it will receive a tax break of £3.75 billion for something that may soon become a stranded asset.

  To be clear, it is not £1.3 billion; it is £1.4 trillion, and that is why this is significant. I am not the only one worried about this—so are financial institutions around the globe. This massive financial risk could spin us into financial crisis if we are not careful. This is not just a climate catastrophe; it is an economic situation that we need to monitor, and we need to ensure that we do not have a cliff edge that lands us in a spiral that we cannot get out of. That is why a transition is so important, and why we need development of industry in the North sea, but cannot rely on our valuations of assets at the moment.

  Full debate: Energy Bill [ Lords ] (Sixteenth sitting)

• 20 Jun 2023: Parliamentary Speech

  It is a pleasure to serve under you again, Dr Huq. I will redeclare my interest, given what we are discussing: my husband is the company secretary of Sheffield Renewables, a community benefit society that funds, develops, owns and operates renewable energy systems in Sheffield and probably South Yorkshire as well.

  It is important to recognise that the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report makes it clear that greenhouse gas emissions from existing fossil fuel infrastructure are more than enough to push us beyond the 1.5°C limit for global heating compared with preindustrial times. The report tells us that if the world is serious about living up to its commitments and avoiding catastrophic climate collapse, no more fossil fuel sources should be opened. When certain factors come together, they complicate and escalate the situation. Everything is unpredictable, including our ability to tell how quickly the changes will come.

  The Government seemed to recognise that at COP26, as they proudly announced that they were leading an international effort to end the use of coal. That commitment on coal was one of the few things that the Government, and Governments internationally, got out of COP26. In December 2022, however—just a year later—the Government went ahead with the Cumbria coalmine. Given what we have heard in today’s debate, I think they realise that that was somewhat nonsensical. Yet I do not understand why they are still trying to remove the clause.

  On community energy, I am really disappointed that the Government want to remove clauses 272 and 273. The Bill could have been an opportunity to help community groups deliver useful schemes that could have provided the clean and green energy that we all want. Sometimes those things happen at a better rate at a local level. We know that a lot of delivery will happen through local authorities, as well as local groups and schemes.

  There is clear cross-party support for community energy schemes. In the Commons, a majority of MPs from all parties support them. It is important that we remember that the measure agreed in the Lords was a cross-party amendment. There is broad support for the issue in both Houses. There is also clear public support, with more than 60 businesses writing to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Minister to declare their support for community energy schemes and calling for the Government to support clauses 272 and 273.

  This is about ensuring that we are kickstarting our local community energy projects, and helping to build skills, jobs and local supply chains. That can only be of benefit as we try to get to net zero as quickly as possible. I know for a fact that people have schemes that are oven ready, or on the shelf and ready to go, but they do not have the confidence to introduce them because they do not have the support that they need from the Government, which the two clauses would provide.

  I have spoken before in the House about taking the public with us, which is really important. Some very interesting polling in The Sun newspaper today showed that 65% of people agree with the idea of net zero. That was the only positive outcome; all the other aspects of it were rejected. One of the reasons for that is the speed at which things need to happen, which creates a real burden on people. I will touch on a few themes that have been mentioned. The issue surrounding the coalmine, as the Minister described, is about coking coal for making steel. We know that almost all of what we need to achieve in the renewables sector—indeed, in anything that involves manufacturing—relies on huge quantities of steel.

  A huge amount has been said about the decarbonisation of that process, which, as the Minister pointed out, cannot be an entire decarbonisation, for chemical reasons. Electric arc furnaces have one key word in them: electric. So far, we have talked about using electricity to make steel, the expansion of electric vehicles and charging those vehicles, and the generation of hydrogen, which also involves electricity. We do not actually have the capacity at the moment to generate all the electricity we need, and that leaves us with an interesting choice. Throughout humanity’s history, there are three things that it fears more than anything else: dark, cold and hunger.

  Full debate: Energy Bill [Lords] (Thirteenth sitting)

• 20 Jun 2023: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Labour's Green Prosperity Plan is about lower bills, good jobs, energy security, and climate leadership. Read about what… [Source]

• 19 Jun 2023: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: ⬇️ Lower bills ????‍♀️ More jobs ???? Energy security ???? Climate leadership This is Labour's mission- to make Britain a clean e… [Source]

• 07 Jun 2023: Tweet

  Really huge (and long overdue) u-turn from the Government & an important step in the fight for netzero! Thank you to everyone who has been campaigning on this ???? https://twitter.com/ThisWinterUK/status/1666402278553657344 [Source]

• 05 Jun 2023: Tweet

  Nature is our best ally in the fight against climate change. And the Climate & Ecology bill is the critical framework we need to halt & reverse nature’s decline before it’s too late. I've written this with @CarolineLucas & @Wera_Hobhouse #WorldEnvironmentalDay #UnitedForNature https://twitter.com/TheHouseMag/status/1665752609943171072 [Source]

• 10 May 2023: Parliamentary Speech

  That leave be given to bring in a Bill to require the United Kingdom to achieve climate and nature targets; to give the Secretary of State a duty to implement a strategy to achieve those targets; to establish a Climate and Nature Assembly to advise the Secretary of State in creating that strategy; to give duties to the Committee on Climate Change and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee regarding the strategy and targets; and for connected purposes.

  The double-headed climate and nature crisis is affecting people’s lives now, especially in the global south, but increasingly here in the UK as well. Just think of the climate change-triggered heatwaves in India and Pakistan, the floods we have seen worldwide and, of course, the floods and heatwaves of recent years here in the UK. There is no room for complacency and no time to waste.

  Nature provides our best chance to mitigate climate change and its worst impacts, such as extreme flooding and drought. As Sir David Attenborough has shown us, nature is not a “nice to have”; it is all we have. As one of the world’s most nature-depleted nations, we must aim higher and we must do better.

  We cannot solve the climate crisis without saving our key ecosystems, restoring habitats and protecting our much-loved species. The UK’s critical carbon sinks and stores, such as peatland, woodland, soils, wetlands and seas, are deteriorating, reducing their capacity to absorb carbon. In some cases, they have even become net carbon sources rather than sinks and stores. Protecting nature must take equal priority with cutting emissions.

  Clause 1 contains the Bill’s apex climate and nature targets. Having a net zero date is an important marker, but we need to understand the area below the curve—in other words, how much carbon we can emit into the atmosphere before we breach 1.5°C. The Bill would limit the UK’s total carbon emissions to no more than its proportionate share of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s remaining global carbon budget for a 67% chance of limiting heating to 1.5°C.

  By transitioning to a renewable energy future, we would not only end our reliance on deadly fossil fuels, but create the jobs of the future and tackle the soaring cost of living crisis at source. Bridging the ambition gap between current emissions reductions and what is needed for 1.5°C is essential if we are serious about restoring the natural world, and it could not be more urgent.

  Clause 2 is focused on the development of a climate and nature strategy. It states that the strategy must produce a just transition for all, by protecting vulnerable communities and providing financial support for workers transitioning from fossil fuel and ecosystem-intensive industries into the jobs of the future. The clause contains measures that must be met in achieving the Bill’s apex targets, including accounting for all of the UK’s imported emissions, as well as those that take place on UK soil, so that the UK is not offshoring our pollution; ending the exploration, extraction, export and import of fossil fuels by the UK as rapidly as possible; ensuring that all UK policies prioritise avoiding the loss of nature; and ensuring that the UK takes account of its entire ecological footprint and all the destruction to nature caused by the production, transportation and disposal of the goods and services we consume.

  From my work in Sheffield Hallam on the climate manifesto, which comprises ideas directly sourced from my constituents, I know the importance of democracy in the transition to net zero and in protecting nature. For that reason, clause 3 would provide for a representative sample of the UK population to consider expert advice and reports on recommendations for inclusion in the strategy as part of the temporary nature and climate assembly. Clause 4 contains duties on the Committee on Climate Change and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee to evaluate, monitor and report on the implementation of the strategy. Clause 5 ensures that measures in areas of devolved competence would be agreed by the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly.

  Full debate: Climate and Ecology

• 10 May 2023: Tweet

  RT @KateOsborneMP: Its vital Government set legally binding annual net-zero & nature restoration targets incl. exploration, extraction, or… [Source]

• 14 Apr 2023: Tweet

  RT @ChamberVoice: Former Shadow Minister for Climate Change, @_OliviaBlake MP details the dangers of peatland burn season for climate chang… [Source]

• 01 Apr 2023: Tweet

  The @wwf_uk and @theCCCuk called on the UK Government to introduce a Net Zero Test on all public spending. Great to see @SheffLabour pledge to matching this commitment at a Council level. https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/politics/elections-sheffield-labour-promises-to-net-zero-test-all-council-spending-4087245 [Source]

• 30 Mar 2023: Tweet

  RT @cebill_now: “Given the final warning for 1.5°C, reports that the Government is off track to meet its own #netzero targets—and the lack… [Source]

• 30 Mar 2023: Tweet

  Given the government's plans for #netzero are a joke it's difficult to take them seriously ???????????? https://t.co/DoSUYPejY4 [Source]

• 30 Mar 2023: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: ‘Green Day’ summarised: ❌ No removal of the onshore wind ban ❌ No new money for energy efficiency ❌ No net zero mandate… [Source]

• 05 Mar 2023: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: The Conservatives are not leaders on net zero, they are lawbreakers. 13 years of failure on energy and climate has led t… [Source]

• 01 Mar 2023: Tweet

  The climate crisis is a global crisis, but its effects will be felt locally. The APPG on a #GreenNewDeal are right, we need a more equitable distribution of decision-making and resources, to empower local authorities to tackle the climate crisis. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/27/local-solutions-uk-net-zero-targets-mps-peers-urge [Source]

• 28 Feb 2023: Parliamentary Speech

  The energy charter treaty allows fossil fuel companies to sue Governments for loss of profits caused by decarbonising. Does the Minister agree that any treaty that punishes attempts to tackle the climate crisis is fundamentally wrong? Does he also agree with France, Spain, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Slovenia, the European Parliament and the European Commission that modernising the ECT is impossible and that it is time to participate in a co-ordinated withdrawal from this deeply damaging treaty?

  Full debate: Energy Charter Treaty

• 28 Feb 2023: Tweet

  Any treaty that allows companies to sue governments tackling the climate crisis is unreformable. The Minister said himself, they've tried to reform the European Charter Treaty & failed. It's time we join EU countries in a coordinated withdrawal from this destructive treaty. https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1630590484904067073/video/1 [Source]

• 27 Feb 2023: Parliamentary Speech

  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dame Caroline. I thank the Petitions Committee for this debate and the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent North (Jonathan Gullis) for outlining the arguments around this issue so eloquently. Those who regularly attend debates on nature and the climate emergency will know that, like many in my constituency, I am a great supporter of our environment and protecting species in decline. Although I am a biomedical scientist, I am intrigued and fascinated by all life, and recognise the value that our natural world offers in so many ways.

  We are here to talk about woodcock. I am here to lend my support to the petition, which 370 of my constituents signed. I thank the campaigners, including Wild Justice and others, for raising awareness of the issue and helping to bring this matter forward for debate. While the migratory population of woodcock is not declining, the native population has reduced by a horrifying 19% in the last 10 years, and by 29% since the 1970s. We should see those figures in the context of the large-scale species decline that is characterising the twin nature and climate emergencies. Last year, Living Planet reported that global animal populations experienced an average decline of nearly 70% in the last 50 years. The woodcock in the UK is clearly at the sharp end of that global trend and, as the “State of Nature Report 2019” highlights, 41% of species in the UK have reduced in number since the 1970s. Since the year 1500, 133 species have vanished altogether. We should be doing all we can to ensure the woodcock does not join them.

  Full debate: Open Season for Woodcock

• 24 Jan 2023: Tweet

  RT @NadiaWhittomeMP: Today my Climate Education Bill returns to Parliament. The climate emergency will affect every aspect of our society.… [Source]

• 01 Dec 2022: Tweet

  RT @Rottensteiner_C: Thanks @APPGMigration @_OliviaBlake for the opportunity to highlight the links between climate change & migration, inc… [Source]

• 01 Dec 2022: Tweet

  Since the Paris agreement, the world’s 60 largest banks financed $3.8 trill worth of fossil fuel projects The vast wealth in the financial system must be used to tackle the emergencies we face - not fuel them I convened a debate on the urgent need to green the financial system. https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1598367079597498368/video/1 [Source]

• 01 Dec 2022: Tweet

  I particularly enjoyed hearing from diaspora organisations working with people at the frontline of climate change. Millions of people are already affected, and we can and must learn so much from their knowledge and skills to avoid further destruction of our planet. [Source]

• 30 Nov 2022: Parliamentary Speech

  An estimated £32 trillion of investment is required to decarbonise the global economy. In the UK, private investment in carbon-cutting activities such as home insulation and electric vehicle charging points needs to grow by an extra £140 billion over the next five years to reach our current net zero goals. It is therefore not only right but essential to mobilise these vast global and national resources to tackle the climate and nature emergencies; however, our finance system is not serving the interests of people or planet. Just 100 of the richest companies are responsible for over 70% of all global emissions. The world’s three largest asset managers have a combined £300 billion invested in fossil fuels, including money from private savings and pensions. In the five years since the Paris agreement, the world’s 60 largest banks have financed fossil fuel projects to the tune of $3.8 trillion.

  As I was saying, we need financial institutions to play their own role in tackling the systemic problems in the sector, alongside the overarching role. The Financial Services and Markets Bill, which is due back in the House next week, was an opportunity to do that, but the Bill has sent the wrong message. Take the priorities that the Bill sets out for regulators: that they should aim to enhance the competitiveness of the sector, but should only “have regard to” the Government’s net zero target.

  The Bill was also an opportunity to move more rapidly on instituting mandatory net zero transition plans for financial institutions, but they are so far missing from the legislation. Plans are important, because they move us away from simply reporting and sharing information, to concrete climate action. We should also be doing much more on investor stewardship and fiduciary duty.

  We need not only to encourage and incentivise fossil-fuel divestment, but to ensure that investors are engaging with and making demands of companies on climate action. That means raising capital requirements on fossil-fuel investments and raising the bar on stewardship, so that climate and nature form critical points of engagement with companies. That should also mean expanding the concept of fiduciary duty. The purpose of a pension is to provide a standard of living to the beneficiary when they retire. We need to shift the concept of fiduciary duty away from gaining returns at any cost, to thinking about the kind of world beneficiaries will retire to, or the world in which their children will grow up. Pension investors have a duty to their customers to ensure that the world is not wracked by flooding, flash fires, famine and freak weather, all driven by the climate emergency.

  It is clear that the Financial Services and Markets Bill does not go far enough; it may even exacerbate some of the results of the climate crisis. Global heating has made our food supply even more insecure. In dumping the MiFID II regulations, the Bill makes speculation on food even more likely, driving up prices and worsening the consequences of the climate emergency.

  Full debate: Greening the Financial System

• 18 Nov 2022: Tweet

  As #COP27 draws to a close, I have written this piece for @nowthenmag on our #HallamClimateManifesto and the importance of devolving power & deepening democracy. Whilst politicians shirk & dither on #ClimateAction, ordinary people are leading the way ???????? https://nowthenmagazine.com/articles/climate-action-must-be-something-we-all-have-a-stake-in-olivia-blake-cop27 [Source]

• 15 Nov 2022: Tweet

  "In a nature and climate emergency, the deliberate destruction of protected species for financial gain is completely devastating and unacceptable." Well said from RSPB's Mark Thomas. @Natures_Voice https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/15/rspb-bird-crime-report-bird-of-prey-persecution-incidents?CMP=share_btn_tw [Source]

• 11 Nov 2022: Tweet

  RT @UKLabour: Rishi Sunak refuses to back onshore wind, putting his party first and the country second. Tackling the climate crisis requir… [Source]

• 10 Nov 2022: Tweet

  5/6 More empty promises won’t do. Climate finance, to help countries in the global south reduce emissions & prepare for catastrophic climate change, has already fallen billions short. The UK won't even reveal latest figures. Leaders including @RishiSunak must be held accountable. [Source]

• 10 Nov 2022: Tweet

  3/6 Commitments made last year at #COP26 to "phase down" coal need to be strengthened. Coal must be phased OUT, and this has to start at home. The UK Government must once and for all scrap plans for a new coal mine in Cumbria. [Source]

• 10 Nov 2022: Tweet

  Right now world leaders are in Egypt at #COP27 If we are to prevent global climate disaster, deliver climate justice and put us back on a credible path to #netzero, this summit must be a turning point. With only 8 days left, here are 4 things I will be looking out for...???????? [Source]

• 09 Nov 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Rishi Sunak is a fossil fuel PM who had to be dragged to COP27. Keir Starmer will make Britain a clean energy superpower.… [Source]

• 07 Nov 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Rishi Sunak is a fossil fuel PM in a renewable age. This is the man who had to be dragged even to go to COP27, and who o… [Source]

• 02 Nov 2022: Tweet

  A week before COP27 & the Govt has again delayed the decision on the Cumbria coal mine. The mine won’t create secure jobs, help our steel industry or fix the energy crisis. But it will lock us into another decade of coal. I've written to Gove urging him to rule out the new mine https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1587808940246564866/photo/1 [Source]

• 02 Nov 2022: Tweet

  RT @CommonsPAC: ✳The UK Government is "failing on pledge to lead the way to #NetZero" - report “The targets set to maintain our world in… [Source]

• 27 Oct 2022: Tweet

  This is terrifying. The gap between what needs to be done to reach net-zero & what we are currently doing is too big. The time for incremental change is over. As @UNEP says, only a root & branch transformation of our economies & societies can save us from climate disaster. https://twitter.com/dpcarrington/status/1585589983724847104 [Source]

• 19 Oct 2022: Parliamentary Speech

  Until recently, the debate on climate change was about the science and about whether global heating is caused by humans. It is important to say, however, that although the climate deniers argued about science and hockey stick graphs, that was not what gave their arguments momentum.

  Let us be clear. There has long been overwhelming evidence that human CO 2 emissions are causing global heating. The motor of climate denial was never a rational, scientific debate; it was about defending the financial interests of the fossil fuel lobby. Pseudoscientific arguments were the only form that that defence took. Now, after decades of campaigning, protesting and lobbying, the monumental efforts of climate campaigners have meant that it is politically very difficult to deny the reality of the climate emergency. The overwhelming scientific evidence has been joined by the international grassroots political movement calling for climate justice.

  We are now seeing a different strategy for protecting oil and gas profits. We are being asked to choose between tackling the cost of living crisis and tackling the climate emergency, between energy security and meeting our Paris obligations. The decision to reverse fracking is part of that new and very cynical strategy. It is an argument that says that black is white, up is down and pulling more fossil fuels out of the ground is somehow a form of environmentalism. We should completely reject that argument, because it is nonsense.

  The twin ecological and climate emergencies are two of the greatest existential threats that we face. They demand that we restore our natural environment, keep fossil fuels in the ground and make a transition to clean, renewable energy. Fracking takes us in exactly the opposite direction. The Climate Change Committee has warned that the moratorium should not be lifted without an independent review of the evidence on the climate impact. Has that review been done? No, of course not.

  The process of fracking produces methane, which contributes to rising global temperatures. Research by NASA has shown that leaky gas production is one of the main drivers of methane emissions on the planet. In fact, during a single week of 2019, in a site in Lancashire, 4.2 tonnes of methane—equivalent to 142 flights—were released. Extracting shale gas is also environmentally damaging because the geography of the UK means that it is more likely to cause earthquakes and chemical flowback, with waters at significant risk of contamination and further significant ecological damage.

  Full debate: Ban on Fracking for Shale Gas Bill

• 19 Oct 2022: Vote

  Ban on Fracking for Shale Gas Bill - Pro-climate vote: Aye - Their vote: Aye

• 18 Oct 2022: Parliamentary Speech

  I think this Bill is rotten to the core, but I will be supporting all the amendments that seek to curb its excesses and to prevent it from cracking down on our right to voice opposition. I will be opposing the proposals to extend stop-and-search powers—powers that have already done so much damage to communities, as my hon. Friend the Member for Streatham (Bell Ribeiro-Addy) mentioned. We do not need this legislation. What we need is a Government who address the real causes of peoples’ concerns: the cost of living crisis, the climate crisis and the lack of trust in our democratic institutions. The draconian proposals we are debating today are about equipping this Government to do the exact opposite.

  Full debate: Public Order Bill

• 27 Sep 2022: Tweet

  RT @Another_Europe: Great to hear from @_OliviaBlake MP about how we can continue to build social movements to fight the climate crisis. Sh… [Source]

• 26 Sep 2022: Tweet

  RT @DeHavilland: At the Levelling Up Net Zero: How Can We Invest in a Fair and Just Transition. Panellists include @_OliviaBlake MP for She… [Source]

• 25 Sep 2022: Tweet

  RT @TetlowTweets: The electricity system can and should be decarbonised as quickly as possible, saving us cash on gas. This is great to see… [Source]

• 20 Sep 2022: Tweet

  The #ClimateEmergency will effect every part of our society. Only a @UKLabour #GreenNewDeal which expands public ownership across the economy, from energy to transport, will deliver a #JustTransition. We must get the opportunity to debate @LabGND's motion on the conference floor https://twitter.com/LabGND/status/1572117406813757441 [Source]

• 07 Sep 2022: Tweet

  2/4 In 2019 the City of London was the 9th largest CO2 emitter in the world This Bill could have been an opp to not only address this but reclaim our finance system to work in the interests of people & planet, enabling rather than preventing a global, just transition to #netzero [Source]

• 30 Aug 2022: Tweet

  RT @NazShahBfd: I'm in Pakistan with @IslamicReliefUK to support with relief efforts & raise awareness about this climate crisis. ❇️ 1/3r… [Source]

• 30 Aug 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: The floods in Pakistan are a brutal reminder of the realities of the climate emergency. It is not a distant threat- it i… [Source]

• 30 Aug 2022: Tweet

  RT @vanessa_vash: Those who suffering the worst impacts of the climate crisis are not responsible for this crisis. This is climate injustic… [Source]

• 22 Jul 2022: Tweet

  RT @algore: As Spanish PM @sanchezcastejon has said, "climate change kills." How many more records will be broken and communities engulfe… [Source]

• 21 Jul 2022: Tweet

  If anyone ever tells you we don't have the money for a #JustTransition and a #GreenNewDeal, just remember this... https://t.co/JV50tjnQpm [Source]

• 21 Jul 2022: Tweet

  Today I asked the Minister why MPs weren't informed that proposals in the Government's #netzero strategy fell short of what is needed to meet our legally binding #netzero targets. The Government's excuse? These things are pretty hard to get right...???? https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1550085029790892033/video/1 [Source]

• 20 Jul 2022: Tweet

  ❌An illegal #netzero strategy ❌No national resilience strategy ❌15 areas declaring major incidents ❌11,500 firefighters cut since 2010 ❌And a 2% pay offer on the table. The front line of the #ClimateEmergency deserve better. https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1549767534945124354/video/1 [Source]

• 19 Jul 2022: Tweet

  @Poly_Tix https://t.co/Ldko7Bgrvi Literally my first speech in Parliament was on the climate emergency. [Source]

• 19 Jul 2022: Tweet

  And just yday the High Court ruled the Govt’s #netzero strategy inadequate, unlawful & too vague to ensure our statutory #climatechange targets are met. We need a #GreenNewDeal to reach #NetZero & urgently increase our climate resilience. https://x.com/GoodLawProject/status/1549075574001487875?t=1AoJnWJ-Xx7SYL9zfxeJIQ&s=19 [Source]

• 19 Jul 2022: Tweet

  It has now been 1,175 days since Parliament passed a #ClimateEmergency motion. Since then the Government has been missing in action. Now we are facing record breaking #heatwave temperatures & we are completely unprepared. What will it take for them to act? https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1549407210400260097/video/1 [Source]

• 19 Jul 2022: Tweet

  RT @GMB: 'They're falling over each other to run away from it.' Shadow Secretary for climate change @Ed_Miliband tells @edballs that he 'f… [Source]

• 15 Jul 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Please stay safe and listen to the warnings. This is yet another reminder that the climate crisis is here. We owe curre… [Source]

• 15 Jul 2022: Tweet

  There’s still time for us to tackle the climate emergency & reverse the decline in nature ????????. The Climate & Ecology Bill heading to the Lords today is our opportunity. Find out more about why I’m supporting the Bill here ???? https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1547886346328367108/photo/1 https://twitter.com/TheHouseMag/status/1547878840952692737 [Source]

• 14 Jul 2022: Parliamentary Speech

  The 2021 Climate Change Committee progress report agreed and said that the Government should

  It is shocking that, in its assessment of the Government’s policies and plans for agriculture and land use, the CCC can identify not one credible plan to abate emissions. It is a wasted opportunity that emissions have been flat in this area since 2008. We should be using the power of our natural environment to lock away carbon. A lot has been said about our rainforests, but in the UK the peatlands are our rainforests. Other countries would be thrilled to have that natural environment, and we are not valuing it. That means we need a proper plan to restore and protect all our peatlands. It means we need real action to increase tree canopy cover and renew our hedgerows, and it means protecting important water and marine habitats such as salt marshes and seagrass meadows. All these measures will reverse the decline in nature at the same time as developing natural carbon sinks to help us meet the challenge of the climate emergency.

  I have one message for Ministers today. They cannot spin their way out of the nature and climate emergencies. A press release for a badly thought through pot of money or a strategy that is light on detail might give them something to say in a debate such as this, but sooner or later the rhetoric will meet reality. It is well past time Minsters started to deliver.

  Full debate: Protecting and Restoring Nature: COP15 and Beyond

• 14 Jul 2022: Tweet

  RT @fionadobson5: Clear words from @_OliviaBlake: "The Government can’t spin their way out of the nature and climate emergencies. Sooner or… [Source]

• 13 Jul 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Away from some of the absurd, illiterate nonsense being spouted in the Tory leadership contest, net zero is the right and… [Source]

• 02 Jul 2022: Tweet

  RT @GreenpeaceUK: ???? NEW: The chairman of the government's official climate change advisory group has branded the proposed new Cumbrian coal… [Source]

• 27 Jun 2022: Tweet

  RT @alanwhiteheadmp: It's 3 years since the UK enshrined net zero into law. We know there is vast room for debate on how to get there, but… [Source]

• 28 May 2022: Tweet

  RT @labpolicyforum: ????Labour wants to create new, green jobs that pay good wages, and ensure that the fight against climate change does not… [Source]

• 10 May 2022: Tweet

  It's hard to know where to start... ❌Instead of addressing the #climateemergency, the nature bill is gone & the Govt are scaling up attacks on peaceful protesters ❌Instead of ending the #CostOfLivingCrisis, there is nothing to help those struggling & nothing new on insultation [Source]

• 20 Apr 2022: Tweet

  RT @HopeFTFuture: This Thursday in Sheffield City Centre and Online ???? https://t.co/WG1wxGdgTH Get your voice heard and keep climate chang… [Source]

• 20 Apr 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: The Tory energy relaunch fails families facing the cost of living crisis. Their failure to go all in on a green energy spr… [Source]

• 06 Apr 2022: Tweet

  RT @natfedevents: *New speaker* @_OliviaBlake MP, Shadow Minister for Climate Change wll join us at our #NHFClimate virtual conference wher… [Source]

• 04 Apr 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: The climate crisis hasn’t gone away - emissions are still rising and we’re heading for a catastrophic 3.2C of warming on c… [Source]

• 23 Mar 2022: Tweet

  RT @NALC_chair: Positive meeting with shadow minister for #ClimateChange and MP for #Sheffield Hallam, @_OliviaBlake. #NALCLobbyDay https:/… [Source]

• 15 Mar 2022: Tweet

  More on Labour's 5 point plan for a renewable energy sprint here????????‍♂️????????????‍♀️ https://t.co/bLvKXxsxWO [Source]

• 12 Mar 2022: Tweet

  RT @FriendsBrook: A very successful launch of our Climate Change Action Project today. Thanks to @_OliviaBlake for an inspiring speech and… [Source]

• 12 Mar 2022: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: For energy security, to get bills down, and to tackle the climate crisis it is time for a green energy sprint. Instead, w… [Source]

• 12 Mar 2022: Tweet

  RT @FriendsBrook: Climate Change Project - register now for our Launch event Saturday 12 March at 1.30pm at Whirlow Brook Hall - more detai… [Source]

• 04 Mar 2022: Tweet

  The influence of the so called "Net Zero Scrutiny Group" on the Prime Minister is disturbing and dangerous. It is no wonder the Government is dragging its heels on climate action. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60572049 [Source]

• 03 Mar 2022: Tweet

  The Govt has no clear plan to deliver #netzero- let alone in a way that is fair, efficient or will tackle the scale of the crisis We need a comprehensive plan for a #JustTransition, to bring down bills, create jobs & improve lives We need a #GreenNewDeal https://www.energylivenews.com/2022/03/03/mps-criticise-government-over-no-clear-plan-for-net-zero-funding/ [Source]

• 2 Mar 2022: Parliamentary Speech

  In its report this week, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change put forward its bleakest warning yet, stating that

  Given that, will the COP President outline what concrete steps have been taken since COP26 to scale up finance for adaptation, whether he will increase ambition in the light of the report, and whether he will commit to bringing a plan to this House on how we will meet the 2025 target?

  Full debate: Oral Answers to Questions

• 01 Mar 2022: Tweet

  Last night I spoke out against the Govt's authoritarian anti-protest Bill. As we confront the #ClimateEmergency, the Govt's priority should be addressing the crisis, not criminalising those sounding the alarm We must protect our democracy & planet - and oppose the #PolicingBill https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1498646390976749570/video/1 [Source]

• 21 Feb 2022: Tweet

  Today is 100 days since the end of #COP26 We knew then that the #GlasgowClimatePact was not enough to keep us below 1.5C. And in the 100 days since, the Govt has done nothing to increase ambition or drive action - choosing instead to continue to stall a #JustTransition at home [Source]

• 17 Feb 2022: Tweet

  RT @LouHaigh: Revealed: The Government’s own target for net zero rail by 2050 is way off track. ???????? At the current rate, it will take until… [Source]

• 10 Feb 2022: Tweet

  RT @SheffCouncil: It’s Park Hill Flats! Climate change will change the way we live. Help Sheffield by having your say on our climate futu… [Source]

• 09 Feb 2022: Tweet

  The Gov't must explain how on earth this is consistent with their so-called commitment to #netzero & 1.5 degrees? To address the #Energy AND #ClimateCrisis we must scale up the #JustTransition to renewables- not bury our heads & continue business as usual https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/oil-gas-fields-net-zero-b2010060.html [Source]

• 28 Jan 2022: Tweet

  RT @NadiaWhittomeMP: I'm thrilled to announced that @UKLabour is backing our Climate Education Bill! ???? Thank you to Shadow Climate Change… [Source]

• 28 Jan 2022: Tweet

  Only by putting climate education on the curriculum can we ensure a democratic, just transition to #netzero that puts communities - not a handful of elites - at the centre of our response Thank you @NadiaWhittomeMP & @_TeachtheFuture for tabling this Bill https://www.bigissue.com/news/environment/their-voices-cant-be-ignored-any-longer-mps-to-debate-students-climate-education-bill/ [Source]

• 26 Jan 2022: Tweet

  Lives are being destroyed across the world because of the #ClimateEmergency. In the UK families are being left freezing & hungry because of the #CostOfLivingCrisis. The PM should for once do the right thing & resign- so we can get on with tackling the urgent crises we face #PMQs [Source]

• 19 Jan 2022: Parliamentary Speech

  In a recent written question, No. 98384, the Government were asked if they would explain how individual policies in the net zero strategy, including on North sea oil and gas, would reduce emissions. In a reply dated 14 January 2022, the Minister said that he would publish the information when

  How is it possible that the Government published a net zero strategy without an understanding of what the individual policies will mean, and how can we therefore believe their promise that we are on course to meet crucial targets for 2030 and 2035?

  Full debate: Oral Answers to Questions

• 19 Jan 2022: Tweet

  Very worrying that the Government have seemingly published their #netzero strategy without any understanding of how far individual polices will help reduce emissions or meet vital targets. We are in a #ClimateEmergency. We don't have time for more empty promises & Tory greenwash https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1483778533516324873/video/1 [Source]

• 12 Jan 2022: Tweet

  RT @thefabians: How can we solve the climate emergency? Join the debate with @KerryMP @_OliviaBlake @SakinaZS & more THIS SATURDAY: the F… [Source]

• 04 Dec 2021: Tweet

  I’m absolutely delighted - & very excited! - to accept my new role as @UKLabour’s Shadow Minister for Climate Change ???? I can’t wait to champion Labour’s Green New Deal from the frontbench ✊????????& hold this Government to account on their failure to tackle the climate emergency ???? [Source]

• 16 Nov 2021: Tweet

  At #COP26 the PM said we were at one minute to midnight. But yesterday when I asked him if he will #StopCambo & halt the Cumbria coalmine - he still couldn't give me an answer. This Government's #ClimateHypocrisy will never cease to amaze me. https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1460582303248404481/video/1 [Source]

• 12 Nov 2021: Tweet

  RT @Complicite: COP 26: EMERGENCY LONDON GATHERING We are in a moment of crisis. Join us @RoundhouseLDN to discuss COP, hear from indigeno… [Source]

• 12 Nov 2021: Tweet

  If #COP26 has shown us anything, it's that #ClimateAction can't be left to the whims of the rich & powerful, bent on business as usual. It is something we must all have a stake in. Get involved, get organised & together we can keep fighting for #ClimateJustice & a #GreenNewDeal https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1459086745673289729/video/1 [Source]

• 06 Nov 2021: Tweet

  RT @GNDRising: we are bringing the heat ???? at the #COP26 march for climate justice https://t.co/R1VnweWdGk [Source]

• 04 Nov 2021: Tweet

  Today was #EnergyDay at #COP26 ☀️????️???? From rapidly phasing out fossil fuels & calling out greenwashing by big energy companies, to scaling up local & community owned renewables - here is what my constituents are demanding from leaders in Glasgow! #HallamClimateManifesto https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1456319811756060676/photo/1 [Source]

• 04 Nov 2021: Tweet

  Join the #COP26 Coalition protests for #ClimateJustice in #Sheffield happening this Sat 12pm at Devonshire Green! #ClimateAction https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1456262729602256902/photo/1 [Source]

• 04 Nov 2021: Tweet

  RT @fbunational: For firefighters battling extreme weather events, the climate emergency is all too real Leaders at #COP26 need to wake up… [Source]

• 03 Nov 2021: Tweet

  RT @SamTarry: This generation of young people may be the first to die of climate change rather than old age. Rather than running scared fr… [Source]

• 03 Nov 2021: Tweet

  Today is finance day at #COP26 But while the government continue spouting empty slogans (all the while subsidising fossil fuels & cutting international aid), the people of Sheffield Hallam have a plan for financing a global #GreenNewDeal #HallamClimateManifesto ???????????????? https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1455931493029662720/photo/1 [Source]

• 03 Nov 2021: Tweet

  RT @IndLP: As world leaders gather in Glasgow for @COP26, @ShefHallamLab MP @_OliviaBlake has launched #HallamClimateManifesto - a timely c… [Source]

• 2 Nov 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  As in 2010, people are marching in the streets, but today it is not Parliament Square; it is Glasgow, and they are marching for action on the climate emergency. Rather than action, this Budget offered them tax breaks on domestic flights and the Government are giving them another coal mine in Cumbria and an oilfield in Shetland and financing gas in Mozambique. They are not building anything back better; in some cases, they are building back far worse. The Chancellor has fired up the DeLorean and taken us back to 2010, when what we need is an economy fit for the future. And no, I am not talking about hoverboards or flying cars.

  This was a chance to meet the challenge of the climate emergency with a radical green new deal. It was a chance to offer a real deal on wages, rather than giving with one hand and taking away with the other. And it was a chance to reverse the crisis in our public services, to put more money into our schools and hospitals and to invest in our children. Looking at the Members on the Conservative Benches, I am reminded of the uncomprehending faces of the 1955 audience as they look up at Marty McFly playing Chuck Berry on the guitar. To them I can only quote Marty:

  Full debate: Budget Resolutions

• 01 Nov 2021: Tweet

  RT @BBCSheffield: Message from Sheffield mums to World Leaders #COP26 They're worried.... https://t.co/KKCAvmapxL #COP26Glasgow @paule… [Source]

• 01 Nov 2021: Tweet

  Democratic participation must be at the heart of all #ClimateAction at & beyond #COP26 - from citizens assemblies to empowering unions on the frontline of the transition. Without democracy we are setting ourselves up to fail. My piece for @BrightGrn????#HallamClimateManifesto https://twitter.com/BrightGrn/status/1455180720406679559 [Source]

• 31 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: COP26 cannot be a roll call of pre-packaged announcements; it must be a real negotiaton based on the science. Here are t… [Source]

• 31 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @EnvironmentAPPG: #COP26Countdown ⏰ ???? @COP26 - HAPPENING TODAY???? ????Thank you to the MPs who joined our call for strong and meaningful ac… [Source]

• 29 Oct 2021: Tweet

  I was proud to join constituents submitting Sheffield Hallam’s #COP26 Manifesto to Downing Street last week. I hope Boris Johnson listens. The Government doesn’t seem to have a plan – but people in Sheffield Hallam do! https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/environment/cop26-sheffield-hallam-constituents-hand-in-climate-manifesto-at-number-10-downing-street-3435873 [Source]

• 28 Oct 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  The UK is among the most nature-depleted countries in the world and the decline is not slowing. The Government have made a deliberate decision not to announce any concrete targets to reverse it until October next year, long after COP26, and are instead focusing on cutting the costs of internal flights rather than cutting rail fares. Does the Minister think this undermines the Government’s credibility at the conference this weekend?

  Full debate: UK Environmental Protections: COP26

• 28 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @LukePollard: We're in the run up to COP 26 and raw sewage is being dumped into our rivers on a daily basis. This Tory Government told… [Source]

• 28 Oct 2021: Tweet

  Nature is in freefall & the Govt deliberately won't set targets to reverse it until long after #COP26 (while making domestic flights, not rail????, cheaper!). I asked if that undermines our credibility at the summit. ???? The answer shows how seriously the Govt take the issue. ???? https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1453661577643757573/video/1 [Source]

• 28 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Back at PMQs for 1-time only I asked Boris Johnson about his Government's failure to deliver real climate leadership ahead… [Source]

• 27 Oct 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  In the House last week, I spoke about the Sheffield Hallam climate manifesto, which was a product of months of meetings with my constituents. We brought together campaigners, trade unionists, experts and people from across the constituency to outline measures to tackle the climate emergency and what the UK should ask for in the COP26 negotiations. In our discussions it was all too clear that, although some understood the importance and scale of the climate emergency, they were not sure about what action should be taken and felt powerlessness to effect the change they know we need.

  That feeling of powerlessness reflects the remoteness of political institutions such as COP26 from people up and down the country who want more robust action on the climate emergency. It also reflects a gulf between the desire to do something and the knowledge of what to do. The same goes for young people: 2.5 million seven to 17-year-old Britons want increased teaching on the climate crisis in schools. The Institution of Engineering and Technology found recently that 68% of young people would like to work in green jobs, but 71% said that they lacked knowledge about those careers, which could stop them pursuing one.

  That is a problem for our democracy but it is one that we can help to fix through our education system. The climate crisis is not going away, and if the purpose of our school system is, as a Labour Prime Minister once said,

  it is right that we educate them about it through the national curriculum. I pay tribute to organisations like Hope for the Future, which works with schools in my constituency and beyond, for their vital work to engage young people and teach them about the climate emergency and democracy.

  Given how young people have often led the discussion, it is appropriate not only to put the climate emergency on the national curriculum, but to ensure that it is part of lifelong learning curricula too. All too often, young people are leading the way while adults struggle to understand the full extent of the crisis and the opportunities offered by green jobs. A just transition to net zero that puts our communities, not a handful of elite decision makers, at the centre of our response means raising the general level of education about the climate emergency. Making it part of our national curriculum is fundamentally a democratic demand, which millions of young people are making. We should all listen to them.

  Full debate: Sustainability and Climate Change (National Curriculum)

• 27 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @NadiaWhittomeMP: "The climate crisis is already here. Our education system needs to stop treating this disaster as a hypothetical futur… [Source]

• 27 Oct 2021: Tweet

  A democratic, just transition to #netzero that puts communities- not a handful of elites- at the centre of our response means putting #ClimateEducation firmly on our curriculum. This is a demand millions of young people are already making. We must listen to them @_TeachtheFuture https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1453313464118677509/video/1 [Source]

• 25 Oct 2021: Tweet

  A week before #COP26 the Government voted against action to stop water companies dumping sewage into our rivers & seas. It's almost like @BorisJohnson & @DefraGovUK have no plan to tackle the #NatureEmergency. This week Labour will again push for this to end. [Source]

• 22 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @RobParsonsNorth: On The Northern Agenda podcast this week - net zero and the North ????Redcar MP @JacobYoungMP on reversing industrial dec… [Source]

• 21 Oct 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  The COP26 President has tweeted that

  “to host a successful, inclusive #COP26 this November, both youth and civil society must be at the heart of both our preparations, and the summit itself”.

  I agree that the climate emergency requires a democratic response, and our approach to the talks should reflect that. It is because we have not had enough democracy in our economy and in our society that we find ourselves debating the issue today. As long as only a few wealthy and powerful people make and lobby for decisions, those decisions will be taken in their interests, not the interests of everyone, and especially not those of the people most affected by the climate emergency.

  Whether it gives people more power over our political institutions, over our communities or over our workplaces, more democracy is a precondition of averting climate catastrophe, but to people across the country, negotiations at the summit will feel very remote. I know that while many people believe passionately in taking actions to address the climate crisis, they also feel powerless. There will almost certainly be a chasm separating those campaigning for climate justice on the streets of Glasgow and those inside the conference hall, which is starkly highlighted by reports today of Governments seeking to water down key proposals ahead of COP26. That is why we have been meeting regularly in my constituency to produce a Sheffield Hallam people’s manifesto for COP26, bringing together campaigners, trade unionists, experts, economists, and people who just want to know how they can help to tackle the climate emergency. At a time when many feel voiceless, we aimed not only to put on record my constituents’ strong belief that more can and should be done, but to make concrete proposals about what they believe must be done.

  I have come here today, to this Chamber, to amplify that voice, and to ask for the COP26 president to meet my constituents and me tomorrow, when they present their manifesto to No. 10 Downing Street. The ideas in the manifesto are wide-ranging, speaking to policy on planning and local government, energy, transport, finance, food, nature, industrial strategy, and international climate justice. Above all, they speak to the dynamism and ingenuity of my constituents in imagining how to do things differently.

  Ministers have a choice at COP26. They can watch the world burn comfortably from the windows of the conference centre, or they can let down the drawbridge and bridge the chasm between themselves and the people watching from their televisions at home or marching in the streets of Glasgow—

  Full debate: COP26: Limiting Global Temperature Rises

• 21 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @chilledasad100: Compare the Govts net zero 2050 plans that are weak, ineffectual & don’t just tinker around the edges but actively fuel… [Source]

• 21 Oct 2021: Tweet

  3/4 For #COP26 to be a success & bring about a just transition, decisions made cannot be left to the whims of one politician or even one party. So tomorrow we will be taking our manifesto straight to @BorisJohnson & @AlokSharma_RDG to call for radical change at & beyond COP. https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1451129950006824960/photo/1 [Source]

• 20 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @RuthNewportWest: With #COP26 around the corner, an #EnvironmentBill fit for purpose has never been more needed than now. The world is… [Source]

• 19 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @EnvironmentAPPG: #COP26Countdown ⏳ 1️⃣2️⃣days to go until @COP26 ????The climate and ecological emergency is the biggest issue facing t… [Source]

• 14 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: Today I set out how Boris Johnson and his government can make Cop26 in Glasgow the success it needs to be, even at this la… [Source]

• 13 Oct 2021: Tweet

  Protecting & restoring all our peatlands is fundamental to meeting our net-zero obligations & tackling the #climatecrisis With over 100 fires set on peatlands weeks before #COP26, the Government's half-hearted "ban" is not working We need action now ❌???? https://unearthed.greenpeace.org/2021/10/12/fires-peatlands-england-national-parks-grouse-shooting/ [Source]

• 13 Oct 2021: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: We cannot let Cop26 be the greenwash summit. It’s time for the Prime Minister to get off his sun lounger, be a statesman a… [Source]

• 28 Sep 2021: Tweet

  RT @WWF_UK_Politics: "We can either solve the ecological and climate crises together or we can solve neither of them." Yes, @LukePollard ????????… [Source]

• 26 Sep 2021: Tweet

  We are in a climate and ecological emergency. We urgently need to decarbonise our economy, restore our natural environment, and deliver thousands of good, green, unionised jobs. We need a Green New Deal now! ✊???????? Great to join @LabGND at @TWT_NOW! https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1442126383996620800/photo/1 [Source]

• 26 Sep 2021: Tweet

  .@MattWrack gave a great speech earlier about why the climate crisis is a worker issue, sharing the stories of firefighters and emergency workers around the world who have already lost their lives protecting our communities from this crisis, and the risks to the UK. [Source]

• 26 Sep 2021: Tweet

  The climate emergency is the here and now, and we will need a comprehensive, coordinated response to flooding and other extreme weather events. Our FBU comrades are right - we need a socialist Green New Deal to require public services and help us tackle the climate crisis #lab21 https://twitter.com/fbunational/status/1441467635628134402 [Source]

• 26 Sep 2021: Tweet

  ???? Strong words from @Ed_Miliband on the need to rapidly decarbonise and deliver a #GreenNewDeal and and green industrial resolution. We can not leave our communities behind. We must act. We can not wait and leave our communities to deal with increasing climate catastrophe.✊ https://x.com/_OliviaBlake/status/1442062678386634753/photo/1 [Source]

• 25 Sep 2021: Tweet

  RT @AngelaRayner: It was great to visit @RicardoGroupPlc this morning to see the brilliant work they are doing on green energy. Labour's n… [Source]

• 18 Sep 2021: Tweet

  RT @Ed_Miliband: With 6 weeks to go until COP26 it’s now or never for the government to get its act together: they must honour our promises… [Source]

• 17 Sep 2021: Tweet

  You can’t draw lines around the climate emergency - our response to it should thread through all the work we do. It’s therefore disappointing that the CAC have blocked this vital motion because it talks about more than one subject. I hope they reverse their decision. https://twitter.com/LabGND/status/1438521004070891531 [Source]

• 22 Jul 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  I extend my thoughts to all those impacted by the flooding in China and in central Europe these past weeks. The loss of life is devastating, and the emergency response heroes have my deepest respect. The flooding should be a wake-up call for us all about the unpredictable but inevitable impacts of rising temperatures. We urgently need serious action. Two priority areas for COP26 this autumn are to protect and restore ecosystems and to build resilient infrastructure to mitigate effects of the global heating we have already seen. It is right that those are priority areas, but because we cannot tackle either the problems with nature or the climate emergency without tackling the other as well, it is important that they are thought about equally.

  Similarly, the recent Climate Change Committee progress report made this call on the Government:

  “Publish an overarching strategy that clearly outlines the relationships and interactions between the multiple action plans in development for the natural environment, including those for peat, trees, nature and plant biosecurity. This must clearly outline how the different strategies will combine to support the Government’s climate change goals on both Net Zero and adaptation, along with the wider environment and other goals.”

  On one of the two key themes of COP26, the CCC and the EAC both say that the Government have no clear strategy. Without a joined-up plan for the UK, how do the Government hope to negotiate one for the entire United Nations?

  Ministers are right to say that the UK’s global leadership starts with our ambition and delivery at home. However, I am worried that our representatives at the conference simply do not have the credibility to talk about the issues with any authority. One of the key pieces of natural infrastructure to mitigate the effects of the climate emergency is our peatlands. The CCC is clear that we need a plan to restore all blanket bogs. Instead, we see Ministers putting forward legislation that protects only 40% of our deep peat. Another piece of important natural infrastructure is our trees and woodlands. Again, the CCC is clear that we need 17% woodland cover by 2050 to meet net zero. Instead, Ministers propose only 12% coverage.

  Those are just some examples on adaptation. The Government have made progress on only five of 34 sectors mentioned in the CCC’s progress report. The stream of Government action plans, grants and press releases represents a litany of piecemeal half-measures. Now the Government say they will wait until after COP26 to publish their species abundance targets, but Ministers should take a plan to the conference, lead the debate by example and push for ambitious targets, not wait for an international consensus to emerge before taking any action.

  Today, I challenge the Minister. What plans is she taking to COP26 for nature recovery? What ambitious targets will she press for at the negotiating table? How will she establish Britain as the leading light in the debate?

  I know that my constituents care deeply about this issue. Every month, I meet with them to discuss different aspects of the negotiations and what they want to see coming out of COP26. They have a clear plan. If the Minister does not, I urge her to meet with us before the conference. If the Government are out of ideas, my constituents have plenty.

  Full debate: COP26 Conference Priorities

• 5 Jul 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  The England trees action plan commits to a mere 12% of woodland coverage by the middle of the century, which is 7% less than the Climate Change Committee’s recommendation of 19%. As well as being weak on woodland coverage, the document contains only four references to hedgerows. I would be grateful if the Minister set out what the Department will do specifically to encourage the creation of more of these habitats, which are so beneficial to hedgehogs. In addition to habitat restoration, there is a wider point to make about species abundance targets—a strange approach to biodiversity that is indifferent to the steep decline of the population. As my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle passionately highlighted, we should not have to wait for a species to become endangered before extending protections to it.

  Full debate: Hedgehogs

• 21 Jun 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  It is perhaps obvious to say as a starting point to any sensible policy on grouse shooting that grouse moors are not natural landscapes. They are a form of managed land, and how they are managed has consequences for how we deal with the twin emergencies of nature and climate. The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. Protecting biodiversity, halting the decline of nature and restoring habitats and wildlife are a priority, not just because they are key to tackling the climate emergency, which I will talk about shortly, but also because it is intrinsically important to protect species and ensure that wildlife can be enjoyed by everyone.

  As I said, the nature and climate emergencies go hand in hand. Last week, the CCC report was clear that protecting our peatlands is a precondition for meeting our net zero obligations and mitigating the effects of the global heating that we already see. There is a huge amount of work to be done, and there is therefore a huge opportunity for jobs in conservation in our uplands. The majority of our peatlands are in poor condition, even in sites of special scientific interest, and as the CCC says, the effort required to restore them all will be huge.

  We have seen huge amounts of carbon being leaked into the atmosphere over the years, with increased burning year on year. Burning releases roughly 260,000 tonnes of carbon per year, but that is compounded by the damage to the peatland that follows. Our degraded peatlands release 10 million tonnes of carbon per year. Not only does heather burning make the climate emergency worse but it makes the effects of the climate emergency more dramatic.

  Full debate: Grouse Shooting

• 8 Jun 2021: Parliamentary Speech

  Protecting our oceans is fundamental to our fight against the climate emergency. We heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Gower (Tonia Antoniazzi) about the action by local volunteers to keep beaches clean, and from the right hon. Member for Chipping Barnet (Theresa Villiers) about the greater efforts needed to tackle plastic waste to protect marine mammals, birds and fish. The hon. Members for St Austell and Newquay (Steve Double), for Truro and Falmouth (Cherilyn Mackrory) and for Strangford (Jim Shannon) spoke about our fantastic coastal communities and the horrific threat of damage from sewage and waste. Will the Minister set out what actions and plans there are to address and end the pollution of our seas by plastic and sewage waste?

  Protecting our oceans is fundamental to our fight against climate change, and it is really important to look at this globally. Salt marshes and seagrasses are a huge carbon store, holding almost 450 million tonnes of CO 2 per year—half the emissions of the entire global transport system. Experts believe that rewilding key marine ecosystems is absolutely necessary and that around the world they could lock away 1.8 billion tonnes of carbon each year—5% of the savings needed globally to avert climate catastrophe. However, in the UK we have lost 90% of our seagrass meadows to pollution, dredging, bottom trawling and coastal development. If we continue business as usual, our sea shelf sediments could release 13 million tonnes of stored carbon over the next decade.

  Full debate: World Oceans Day 2021

• 07 Jun 2021: Vote

  Advanced Research and Invention Agency Bill — New Clause 1 - Human Rights Abuses - Pro-climate vote: Aye - Their vote: Aye

• 26 May 2021: Vote

  Environment Bill — New Clause 24 - Prohibition on burning of peat in upland areas - Pro-climate vote: Aye - Their vote: Aye

• 13 Jan 2021: Vote

  Financial Services Bill — Schedule 2 - Prudential regulation of FCA investment firms - Pro-climate vote: Aye - Their vote: Aye

• 18 Nov 2020: Parliamentary Speech

  The UK peatlands contain an estimated 3,200 million tonnes of carbon, more than the forests of the UK, France and Germany combined. There is no way that the Government can tackle the climate crisis without ensuring that our peatlands continue to store that colossal quantity of carbon. It would be a catastrophe if it were released and, yet that is exactly what is happening.

  Between the 1940s and the present, there has been a sevenfold increase in burning on peatland in England alone. In Great Britain, between 2001 and 2011, burning increased at a rate of 11% per year. The more we allow that to continue, the greater the acceleration in the climate crisis we will see before our eyes. We will also see impacts on our environment.

  In January, the Committee on Climate Change recommended that peat burning should be banned by the end of 2020. The Government have routinely committed to ending the burns, but we have yet to see any legislative progress towards that. Instead, the Government have asked landowners only to sign voluntary agreements not to burn, and they simply are not working. For the sake of our environment, the Government must announce an immediate ban on this destructive practice and restore our peatlands to their natural bog habitats, so that they can deliver for biodiversity and carbon sequestration.

  Nobody in this debate supports the deregulation of moorlands. The idea that setting fire to large swathes of our countryside is a responsible form of regulation and management is completely incredible. It releases millions of tons of CO 2 into the atmosphere, making the climate emergency worse. It destroys habitats and damages the ecosystem and ecologies. As fires rage on our uplands, they increase the threat of floods from our lowland rivers.

  We cannot rely on the good will of landowners to stop the burning—just ask the residents of Hebden Bridge and the Calder valley. We all saw on our TVs the damage done to those communities by last year’s flooding, and many now attribute those floods to heather burning on Walshaw moor. Instead, we need to restore and re-wet our peatlands, using them as one of the many natural solutions to the climate crisis. To do that, we must end the year-on-year cuts to spending on the environment and set out a plan for investing in nature. That means having a national nature service to create well-paid, secure, unionised jobs. We need to lock CO 2 into the ground and to protect biodiversity and our natural environment’s fragile ecologies. We also need to ensure that those who seek to burn protected peatlands face the full weight of the law.

  Full debate: Moorland Burning

• 16 Nov 2020: Vote

  Pension Schemes Bill [Lords] — Clause 124 - Climate change risk - Pro-climate vote: Aye - Their vote: Aye

• 12 Oct 2020: Vote

  Agriculture Bill — After Clause 42 - Contribution of agriculture and associated land use to climate change targets - Pro-climate vote: No - Their vote: No

• 29 Sep 2020: Vote

  United Kingdom Internal Market Bill — New Clause 6 - Economic development: climate and nature emergency impact statement - Pro-climate vote: Aye - Their vote: Aye

• 26 Feb 2020: Parliamentary Speech

  I am pleased that, after pressure on the Government, the Bill now includes a reference to climate change enforcement. If the rising sea levels, fires and floods do not constitute a threat to our environment, I am not sure what does. The fires in Australia have affected 1.25 billion animals and, according to WWF estimates, have harmed 30% of the koala population. There is abundant scientific research to demonstrate that global heating will result in the extinction of thousands of plants and animal species, and the UK is not immune. It is nonsense to say that we are in favour of biodiversity but not lift a finger to stop the carbon emissions that have led to the destruction of ecosystems and fragile ecologies, making the 10% increase in biodiversity almost impossible to deliver. It is not meaningful to talk about protecting the environment without also talking about how we end the climate catastrophe that is currently wreaking havoc across the globe.

  The only way to secure our environment and defend the diversity of our wildlife in the long term is to halt rising temperatures and reach zero emissions by the 2030s. That means fundamentally reshaping our economy and infrastructure by handing power to the people with the greatest interest in stopping climate catastrophe—not the bankers, as we heard earlier, or big businesses, but working people.

  At a time when No. 10 can sack a Chancellor for refusing to fire his staff, are we really to have any confidence that the Government will not seek to interfere in the decisions made by the proposed Office for Environmental Protection? I wonder whether the intention is to create a Cassandra-esque body so that those in power can wrongly ignore the truth that it speaks. To tackle climate change and protect our environment, we need democratic and independent institutions that have the power to enforce action on climate chaos in a meaningful way.

  We can either face up to the reality of the climate crisis and transform our institutions, our economy and our infrastructure, or consign our planet and our wildlife to environmental catastrophe. That is the decision we face. It is a historic opportunity and a historic responsibility. I am sorry to say that it is an opportunity that the Bill squanders and a responsibility that it shirks.

  Full debate: Environment Bill

• 05 Feb 2020: Vote

  Transport - Pro-climate vote: Aye - Their vote: Aye

• 4 Feb 2020: Parliamentary Speech

  I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Nottingham East (Nadia Whittome) on securing this debate and on giving us an opportunity to discuss the climate crisis. It is the greatest existential threat of our time and climate justice is becoming increasingly urgent. It is timely that this debate has been called ahead of Parliament’s voting on the Government’s Environment Bill. As colleagues know, much has been made of the Government’s ambitious target to decarbonise by 2050, but it is simply a headline. At the moment, it is a plan.

  When we talk about climate change, we speak about the climate emergency. The summer saw swathes of the Amazon burn, and Australia is currently fighting the wildfires that have gripped areas the size of our own counties, so we are right to speak in terms of an emergency. However, I fear there is no recognition of that emergency in the Government’s response to the crisis so far, beyond declaring one. There is no sense of urgency. There is more CO 2 in our atmosphere now than at any point in human history, so before we pat ourselves on the back for small reductions in production—as has been mentioned, the offshoring of our share hides the truth on consumption—we must remember that we need to up our game and set out a radical course of action. We cannot let COP26 be a cop-out. It is our last chance to correct the path to climate disaster.

  Locally, Sheffield City Council has declared a climate emergency and has set out a carbon budget with the Tyndall Centre, which shows the city would use its entire budget for the next 20 years in less than six. Rightly, it has set a course to try to get to net zero by 2030. Before Christmas, again, communities across South Yorkshire experienced flooding. The impact of an international crisis played out locally. If the UK was serious about preventing climate breakdown, we would not be seeing more investment going into drilling in new oilfields or building more pipelines. Instead we see UK-headquartered banks and the Government bankrolling fossil fuel extraction and directing more and more finance to fossil fuel companies, rather than solutions to the crisis. If we were serious about climate justice, the Government would regulate and penalise private banks for providing billions for fossil fuel extraction at home and abroad.

  Between 2016 and 2018, HSBC gave $57 billion to the fossil fuel industry. Barclays, the biggest funder of fossil fuel infrastructure in Europe, gave almost $25 billion to fossil fuel companies in 2018 alone. The Government offered only £100 million of private investment for renewable energy investment in sub-Saharan Africa in 2018, which shows the difference in scale. Through their campaigns, organisations such as People & Planet and Greenpeace have brought to light the fact that our banks have been acting like fossil fuel companies with the amount of extraction they are financing, showing a determination to see the industry continue. It needs to stop. Without further regulations and legislation on our financial system there will be almost free rein to continue to make our worlds toxic and to continue to push us over the cliff we are balanced on, with temperatures potentially soaring by three degrees, which we know will be catastrophic.

  The climate crisis is a threat to us all, but we do not all face it equally. In fact, we must remember those who have already tragically lost their lives, swept up in the climate disaster, trying to protect communities and fight for the frontline of public services across the world. The Government need to end their support for climate colonialism and penalise banks that are accelerating climate breakdown at the frontlines. Climate justice absolutely requires recognising and mitigating the worst effects of the crisis and facilitating environmental migration in response to disaster displacement, which is unavoidable at this point. Fundamentally, we need to take a radical approach. Let us take as our starting point the root cause of the issue—where our Government are accelerating and exacerbating climate breakdown. Climate justice means acting now to stem the worst effects of the crisis, and for that we need to take aim at the banks that are choking our future. Our inaction is also choking our future. We continually raise the issue not to try to be a thorn in anyone’s side, but to be the roots that can lead to a shoot of hope for future generations.

  Full debate: Climate Justice

• 15 Jan 2020: Parliamentary Speech

  Today, the seat also hosts thousands of students and researchers from all over the world; students who travelled to Sheffield to study at both our world-class universities. I am delighted to represent this young, diverse and multicultural community. Sheffield is such a great place to live and work that so many of our students stay on in the city after they have finished their studies, meaning that we have one of the highest graduate retention rates in the country. However, we also have our problems. I know that by convention maiden speeches are less political than the other things that are usually said in this House, but I hope Members will forgive me for bringing up austerity, the climate emergency and Donald Trump.

  Despite the history of Robin Hood, many areas still suffer from massive inequality. Some of the most deprived areas in the city sit alongside some of the least. In fact, on polling day this was stark. We not only spoke to people on the so-called millionaires’ row, but to families who had been hit by the bedroom tax. Our students are saddled with tens of thousands of pounds of debt, and mental health issues are on the rise for our young people. Our schools have suffered almost a 10% decline in funding per pupil and inadequate budgets for the needs of our children, with the previous Government acknowledging that they did not give us enough funding for our children with special educational needs and disabilities. As a councillor, I saw first hand our local government budgets cut, cut and cut again. Government grants have been reduced by 50% over the past decade, making it impossible to deliver services—never mind tackle the climate crisis.

  The countryside in my constituency is beautiful, but it is under threat. The moorlands are on fire, burnt for grouse shooting. Those acts of vandalism have made flooding more likely and are also putting important species in the area, such as the bilberry bumblebee, at risk. Across the country, peat fires have thrown millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Protecting biodiversity is a key part of tackling the climate crisis, which is why the national park, in its 70th year, is so important to constituents and visitors alike. As we see biodiversity decrease locally, we also see the global consequences of the climate crisis. As the world heats to perilous levels, wildfires have swept across California, dangerous heatwaves and floods have ravaged India, and now fires consume Australia. Across the globe, vast movements of people have left their homes because the coastlines that they once occupied have disappeared or the land that they cultivated has dried up. They join refugees fleeing war and persecution. Those numbers will only increase with President Trump’s actions in the middle east and his climate denial. I am proud that Sheffield calls itself a “City of Sanctuary”—a city that welcomes and defends migrants.

  The climate chaos that we all face is unprecedented. Now is not the time for propriety; it is the old way of doing things that brought us to this crisis. Some of the industrial relics of that old way still stand in my constituency, but now we need radical change, and the only way we will get that is by taking radical action now. It is not just urgent; it is well overdue. The science is clear. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that the absolute hard limit for transforming to a zero carbon economy is 2050, but the world is burning now. That is why I support my party’s pledge to work towards a path to net zero carbon emissions by 2030.

  To meet that challenge, we need to channel the spirit of industry and innovation that lingers along the rivers and valleys of my constituency in order to restructure our economy fundamentally. Rather than cuts, it is time to invest, not in the CO 2 emitting factories of the first industrial revolution, but in the sustainable green energy infrastructure and high-skilled jobs of the green new deal.

  is if we look after our environment. There is no social justice on a dying planet. There is also no way to tackle climate catastrophe without changing the inequalities at the heart of our economy, and without redistributing power from those at the top to the rest of us.

  Full debate: A Green Industrial Revolution