A sobering picture of the true impact of climate change’ – Griff Thomas, MD for GTEC & Heatly, part of the United Living Group, comments on David Lammy’s climate crisis speech
Posted by: electime 18th September 2024
Foreign Secretary, David Lammy’s first major foreign policy speech, was a sobering reminder that the impact of climate change will be felt by us all if we don’t do more to tackle it. I applaud the seriousness of his words, which highlighted the true implications of continued rising temperatures, including displaced communities and a worsening migrant situation as many more people are forced from their homes.
Lammy has vowed to make tackling the climate and nature crisis, ‘central to all the Foreign Office does’, recognising that these issues are the core of many other areas of foreign policy, likening them a similar threat as terrorism and viewing extreme weather events as ‘failures in politics, regulation and international co-operation’.
Framing it in this way will hopefully communicate the urgency of the issue to those who still view the climate crisis as a distant problem that doesn’t affect them. Lammy is keen for the UK to lead the charge in this area, forging a Global Clean Power Alliance. This clear and serious messaging is refreshing and very different to the previous government, and I hope it is now followed through with consistent and robust policy.
Labour has already made some positive moves in this area, including lifting the de facto ban on onshore wind in England, pledging to end new oil and gas licenses and implementing Great British Energy to crowd investment for clean power projects – something which Ed Milliband talked about yesterday, at the Energy UK annual conference. He also framed moving away from fossil fuels as a matter for national security in terms of our reliance on gas from unstable sources, at the mercy of prices made on the international market. In the UK, renewable energy is now the cheapest option.
Whichever way you look at it, therefore, adopting a low carbon way of living is good for our country, not something to be u-turned on or used as part of the ‘culture wars’ as was common in our previous political landscape. Fearmongering and misinformation around renewable technologies must also be tackled. If the UK wants to lead in this area, everyone must be on board – for too long slanderous views surrounding the roll back of fossil fuels have been allowed to pervade, particularly in our media.
There is much for big corporations to do, but the importance of the domestic building services sector should not be underestimated. Enhanced support for installers and consumers, with greater and more concerted efforts put towards positive education and the allayment of largely unfounded fears, are key to the UK’s own path the Net Zero – Milliband highlighted that we have ‘undelivered’ on clean energy jobs, compared to many of our European counterparts – while contributing to government’s wider ambitions to be a world leader in environmental reform.
While Lammy’s messaging may be stark, it should also be viewed as an exciting opportunity – if we truly take the climate change ‘bull by the horns’, so to speak, the repercussions can only be positive: for our economy, security, global standing and the future of our natural world.
