Another day, another insult. When I urged the energy secretary Grant Shapps not to plough ahead with issuing climate-wrecking new oil and gas licences, he described my proposal as a “bonkers policy”.
I’d argue that’s the pot calling the kettle black, given we are in a climate emergency, energy bills are still climbing, demand isn’t falling and security is lacking. In June, the independent Climate Change Committee said that “expansion of fossil fuel production is not in line with net zero”. That means no new coal, no new oil, no new gas. But Shapps seems to think that we should just kick off our shoes and relax.
We’re not decarbonising anywhere near fast enough. The Energy Bill making its way through parliament provides an ideal opportunity to get us on track—by ruling out new fossil fuel licences, for starters. I’ve been working with colleagues of all political colours to table amendments to do just that.
There are so many wins up for grabs. A street-by-street mass insulation programme would make homes warmer and bring bills down. Unblocking onshore wind and putting solar panels on every new roof, which Shapps appears strangely allergic to doing, would boost our renewable output.
Every home should be a mini power station, harnessing abundant and affordable energy. This power—owned and run by local communities—is the path to delivering cheap and clean transport, and creating skilled and stable jobs. That’s common sense, not bonkers.
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The omnishambles of the government’s Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) is heart-breaking. One constituent’s relative, in hiding and fearing for his life under Taliban rule, has managed to escape from Afghanistan to a third country—and he has been cleared by the Foreign Office to be settled in the UK. But the UK government can’t resettle him, because no “suitable accommodation has been secured”. Last night, while grabbing a sandwich between various commitments, I wrote again to the Home Office about this case.
The ACRS started accepting applications a year ago, promising 5,000 resettlements within that first year. Data from May reveals there have been just 14. No matter how it feels when my messages seemingly disappear into a Home Office black hole of incompetence and indifference, I can’t just let the government fail so spectacularly to keep its promises.
Vulnerable people’s lives are being made a nightmare by the tangled bureaucratic web that calls itself an immigration and asylum system.
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MPs have just debated the most dangerous bill you’ve never heard of. The Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill is a verbose name for what is, in reality, an anti-boycott bill—forcing public authorities to ignore ethical concerns about their investments. It attacks freedom of expression, erodes democratic principles and puts social and climate justice in jeopardy.
So it was utterly depressing to hotfoot it up from Brighton to vote and not only see the bill pass at second reading, but for a staggering 184 Labour MPs to abstain. Principled opposition in this country appears to have gone awol.
As I work on my Covid-19 inquiry submission during the week of the NHS’s 75th birthday, I’m reminded of the huge value of our public services, and the depth of the damage caused by a government intent on their erosion. I’m immensely grateful to all NHS staff, who have too often been left to pick up the pieces. They deserve to be paid properly for doing so.
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From my conversations with constituents during weekly surgeries, I know that care and compassion can be in short supply when administrative systems are mired in confusion and complication. I’ve always sought to ensure that people feel heard, that their concerns matter and that they are not alone.
This part of an MP’s job is an intense responsibility. I’m regularly kept awake at night worrying about people who need help with their housing situation, face difficulties getting disability support or literally cannot afford to put a hot meal on the table.
All of this has meant I’ve sometimes struggled to focus on the existential challenges that drive me—the climate emergency, the energy crisis, the degradation of our precious natural world. And it’s why I’ve decided to step down as an MP at the next general election.
My plan is to take a deep breath, reflect and rejuvenate. But I certainly won’t be putting my feet up and retiring any time soon.
Firstly, I’ll be working to ensure that we have not just one, but several new Green MPs taking my place in Westminster—holding a prospective Labour government’s feet to the fire to deliver on its promises, or continuing to provide consistent opposition to a Conservative one. Then I’ll be turning my full attention to those vast and all-encompassing climate and nature emergencies.
