CLIMATE CHANGE campaigners from Saddleworth met with their MP outside Parliament as they took part in a 9,000-strong lobby.
Gennie Slater, Bernie Slater, Catherine Jones, Rosie Banham and Alison Brittle joined the ‘Speak up for the love of…’ lobby to highlight concerns about the effects of climate change.
They would like the government to ensure 100 per cent clean, safe energy by 2050 and support in dealing with effects of climate change in developing countries.
Debbie Abrahams, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, met the group outside the Houses of Parliament to listen to their worries.
Bernie said: “We were there to ask Debbie, as our MP, to help us urge the government to take action to tackle the devastating effects of climate change before it’s too late.
“We are already seeing floods, droughts, irregular and extreme weather caused by developed countries, like ours, and excessive use of energy from burning coal, oil and natural gas.”
Mrs Abrahams MP added: “It was a pleasure to meet with Bernie, Alison, Rosie, Cath and Gennie and talk about these vitally important issues.
“I am applying for a Westminster Hall debate on this issue and submitting questions to Ministers to hold them to the highest levels of scrutiny.”
Bernie added: “We were not only speaking for ourselves, but representing family, friends, St Edward’s church, primary school, and CAFOD/Justice & Peace Group, Lees, the CAFOD Action Team for Oldham, Rochdale and Ashton-under-Lyne, the Northern Lights CLC prayer group in Dobcross and the Saddleworth Churches Together Christian Aid Group.
“We appreciated the opportunity to talk to Debbie and she listened carefully and seemed very well-informed about the issues we raised.
“We’re are deeply concerned that if governments don’t act urgently and significantly to halt the harmful effects of climate change the consequences will be dire and irreversible.
“Climate change is the biggest threat today to all life on earth and is pushing more and more people into poverty.
“The hard work and investment by development agencies such as CAFOD, Christian Aid and Oxfam is being undermined and undone and beautiful environments we depend on will be irreparably damaged or lost if we don’t act quickly.
“We all need to adapt the way we use energy, and the government needs to lead on global commitments to attain clean, sustainable energy for all.
“The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) report says it is unequivocal that climate change is occurring and confirms there is at least 95 per cent certainty that human activities are the principal cause.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.