10th May 2010

POST-ELECTION CLIMATE EMERGENCY VIGIL

Overnight, Saturday to Sunday 15th-16th May, outside Parliament

Candlelit Procession down Whitehall - assemble 11.00pm outside St Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square.

Put Climate Change back into politics -  take the message to whoever forms the new government that dealing with the climate crisis needs to be their top priority.

Light a candle for scientific realism and rationality against the dark, populist, tide of sceptic lies and ignorance.

Let them know straightaway that the cuts we need are emissions cuts, not jobs cuts – and we need to start the work of building a zero carbon Britain straightaway.

11.00 pm   Assemble outside St Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square. Service inside the church from 11.00 pm organised by Christian Ecology Link. Contact  ruthj@phonecoop.coop, 07970 907784.
 
12.00 midnight. Candlelit Procession for the Climate down Whitehall.

12.30 - 5.00 am Overnight Vigil at Old Palace Yard, outside Parliament.. Speakers from UKYCC, the ‘Spartans, Plane Stupid, a Tar Sands group, the Green Party  etc – more details later.  'Art and Empowerment' events through the night - bring lanterns, your music, your art.

5.00 am 'Zero Carbon' Dawn

6.00 am Climate 'Vigil-istas' communal Breakfast.

We have the use of two venues that will be open all night and are within walking distance of the vigil, where vigil-goers can go to get some refreshments and rest their legs: the Lambeth Methodist Mission and St Jude's Community Centre. We also have nearby toilet facilities provided by the Salvation Army.

For map and detailed schedule see www.campaigncc.org/overnightvigil

For detailed timetable of the ‘Art and Empowerment’ schedule of activities see here.

Meanwhile there is also a vigil taking place in Derby on Saturday 15th May 2010 9.30 -10.00pm, on the steps of the council house in Derby. Come along with your candle.

Also if you’re in London you can help prepare for the Vigil...

Final vigil planning meeting and fun prop making session Wednesday 12th May at 6:30pm in the basement meeting room of Housman's Bookshop, 5 Caledonian Road, London, N1 9DX.

We need lots of help for making stuff for the Vigil, including masks, lanterns, and maybe a big banner. Everyone welcome! Tea and great biscuits provided!

Also, cake and flasks of coffee donations very welcome on the night of the vigil to keep the vigil-goers going.

General Election 2010

What does Britain's first hung parliament since 1974 mean for climate policy? 

Out of the 3 main parties the Liberal Democrats have the strongest policies on climate change, but will Nick Clegg stand firm on these or trade them off for concessions on other issues? You can email Nick Clegg to insist he does not water down Lib Dem climate and energy policies in any coalition by going here.

Meanwhile Tadhg White gives a brief:

Critical Evaluation of Lib Dem and Conservative climate policies:

Both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have committed to the EU target of 15% carbon emission cuts by 2020, although the Liberal Democrats have gone one step further in committing to 30% cuts by 2020 (from 1990 carbon levels). The Liberal Democrats have pledged a zero carbon UK (reached with 10% of emissions offset) by 2050. Its arguable whether at the stage we are now any level of cuts can really be said to be ‘safe’ but current science suggests we need much more serious cuts on a global level and the UK Committee on Climate Change has recommended a cut of 42% by 2020 for the UK.

Whilst the Conservatives talk about new coal and gas power plants with carbon capture and storage, and the development of an Offshore Electricity Grid and Marine Energy Parks, they make little commitments to renewable energy sources and are in favour of building nuclear power plants. The Liberal Democrats would not build nuclear power plants preferring to make the UK more energy efficient and promote renewable energy sources. They have a target of 40% of the UK’s energy coming from renewables by 2020 and 100% by 2050. The Liberal Democrats suggest their green energy and green stimulus package would promote 100,000 green jobs, but this falls short of the 1 Million Climate Jobs called for by Campaign against Climate Change.

Both the Conservative and Liberal Democrats would block the third runway at Heathrow, but aside from this the Conservative transport policy has very little focus on reducing carbon emissions. The Liberal Democrats have several initiatives to improve public transport and reduce emissions including a tax on domestic flights where there are less carbon intensive alternatives, a step towards CCC’s Climate Emergency call for ban on domestic flights and part of the EDM submitted by Colin Challen signed by over 65 MPs during the last parliamentary session.

Conservative Climate Change Policy

www.conservatives.com/Policy/Where_we_stand/Climate_Change_and_Energy.aspx

Liberal Democrats Climate Change Policy

network.libdems.org.uk/manifesto2010/mini/libdem_2010_environment.pdf

Featured audio

Listen to Kevin Anderson from the Tyndall Centre take on sceptic Nigel Lawson live on BBC Radio 2. Download from www.tyndall.ac.uk/audio/kevin-anderson-debates-global-warming-nigel-lawson-jeremy-vines-show

Climate change in the news - UK

The news in the UK has been dominated by the General Election. While we still wait for the final outcome, the Green Party is celebrating the election of their first MP, Caroline Lucas. www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/07/caroline-lucas-green-party-election

Climate change in the news - International

Political wrangling further obstructs the passage of Obama’s Climate Bill. www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/apr/28/climate-bill-lindsey-graham-standoff

The catastrophic spill in the Gulf of Mexico has set off a backlash against the oil industry in the US www.businessgreen.com/business-green/news/2262489/deepwater-horizon-oil-spill

The South African tourism minister is tipped as favourite to replace Yvo de Boer as UN climate chief. www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/06/marthinus-van-schalkwyk-yvo-de-boer-un-climate-chief

255 members of the US National Academy of Sciences have written an open letter condemning the "McCarthy-like" assault on climate scientists. www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/06/climate-science-open-letter-nas

Experts warn of soaring carbon emissions from online data storage. www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/apr/30/cloud-computing-carbon-emissions

A new study shows that dwindling levels of sea ice are responsible for unusual levels of global warming in the Arctic.