The Green Transformation: Labour’s Environment Policy

The Labour Party's new environment policy document was published today, 13th February 2019.

Download the 16 page pdf here.

It starts with pretty pictures and fine words and, importantly, on page 5 where it really starts we get:

1. Ambition is based on science

 Leading to ...

" This underlines our commitment to meet the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global temperature rises to no more than 1.5 °C."

but as we in the climate science community know, that one's for the birds.

The first 'Action on Energy' (page 9) is

"Ensure that 60 per cent of the UK’s energy comes from low-carbon or renewable sources within twelve years of coming to power"

So in the early 2030s Labour policy is that about 40% of energy will still come from fossil fuel. Sorry, but that's humanity's death sentence. We've got to do much better than that if our grandchildren's lives are not to be nasty, brutish and short.

By the time one reaches page 16 (a picture of Jeremy Corbyn in a crowd of young smiling folk on a green background) one realises that they have included lots of good policies on lots of things, a few bad policies (HS2 instead of being cancelled gets extended to Scotland and airports are allowed to expand) and some notable omissions (the words 'nuclear' and 'Hinkley' do not appear), one realises that the Labour Party has absolutely failed to understand the urgency and seriousness of the climate catastrophe that we are beginning to witness.
The issue of economic growth is ignored. The word 'growth' only occurs twice, once to guarantee "airport expansion ... growth across the country supported" and once to "encourage the growth of wildflowers". Can't argue with the latter!

This policy document does not put the country onto a 'war-footing', transforming everything we do. It just indulges in some useful mitigation work at the margins.