Citizens' Climate Lobby UK

Lobbying for a carbon fee and dividend

News

Government urged to build back MUCH better by 40+ Tory MPs, Peers and other influential bodies –

by

An article by Harry Cockburn in The Independent today reveals that …..

The government is coming under increasing pressure to set out ambitious new climate plans. A series of letters from across the political and social spectrum signed by various groups of health professionals, campaigners, MPs, and academics, are all calling on the government to take action to fight the climate crisis ahead of the UK-UN climate summit on 12 December.

The summit will mark the fifth anniversary of the Paris agreement, and comes amid increasing evidence the world is not on course to limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. One of the letters, addressed to the prime minister, comes from the UK Health Alliance on Climate Change, which represents health bodies in the UK, including the BMA, the Lancet, the Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of Nursing, and the Royal Society of Medicine, and calls for an ambitious emissions reduction strategy consistent with both the Paris agreement and the UK’s 2050 net-zero target.

“Without rapid decarbonisation the impact of climate change on our health will be catastrophic,” the letter says. “As a national coalition of health professionals we have a duty to protect and promote public health and wellbeing.”The Health Alliance is urging the government to set out the UK’s “nationally determined contributions” (NDCs), which outline a country’s ambitions for reducing emissions, taking into account its domestic circumstances and capabilities.The letter adds: “We call for the UK’s NDC to be announced as soon as possible in order to catalyse increased ambition from other countries and maintain momentum.

It comes after more than 40 Conservative MPs and peers also wrote to the government demanding a “much more ambitious” plan that is in line with the UK’s commitment to cut its emissions to net-zero overall by 2050. Addressed to Alok Sharma, the secretary of state for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the letter urges the government to “engage the public on climate change”, “commit the necessary diplomatic resources and senior ministerial time to make Cop26 a success”, and to “be as ambitious as possible going into this vital summit in terms of our domestic ambitions”.

And another letter from the Elders, a group which includes six former presidents and prime ministers of countries around the world, calls for the UK to put forward a “bold and world-leading climate target for 2030 and encourage all other nations to make similar commitments”.

After Brexit, the UK, which was previously covered by the European Union’s plans under the Paris agreement, must produce its own nationally determined contribution. Ministers have said they will produce new plans ahead of the UN Cop26 climate summit, which is now being held in Glasgow in November 2021 after being delayed from this year by the pandemic. Countries were due to put forward more ambitious plans up to 2030 by the end of this year, as current contributions will not curb temperature rises to 1.5C or “well below” 2C, goals which were agreed in the Paris deal.

They have been invited to submit more ambitious plans at the virtual summit on 12 December this year. “The climate emergency is fully upon us, and we have no time to waste,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres in a statement. “The answer to our existential crisis is swift, decisive, scaled up action and solidarity among nations.”

The link in the paragraph about Conservative MPs will take you to their letter and the list of MPs who signed it. If your MP is among them this is a marvellous opportunity to send them a letter, introducing yourself if you have not previously written, thanking them and mentioning why CF&D is such a good option (with a link to or mention of the website). There is advice on writing to MPs in the Action section of the website. Good luck!

David Attenborough warns about the consequences of only concentrating on the pandemic…

by

Sir David Attenborough has said the global focus on the Coronna virus pandemic remains a serious threat to concerted action to tackle the world’s spiralling environmental crises. The 94-year-old naturalist and broadcaster also threw his support behind Greta Thunberg’s school strike for climate movement, saying she had given the world “hope” by energising young people to learn about the natural world and fight against the climate crisis and biodiversity loss. Sir David has recently launched the film A Life on Planet Earth, which he describes as his “witness statement” from his life documenting the natural world. As the planet is “heading for disaster”, as he says in the film, he is also concerned about the cancellation or lengthy postponement of several international climate conferences such as COP26 due to the pandemic, and he is worried people are changing their priorities. “I am worried that people will take their eyes off the environmental issue because of the immediate problems they have on Covid-19,” he said. “It’s put off a series of conferences in which all the nations get together and talk.”

 

Sir David was speaking alongside Ms Thunberg at Wildscreen, a virtual film festival on wildlife being held in Bristol. Speaking from his home in London, he praised the teenager and said her campaigning had made other young people demand action to halt the climate crisis. “If there is any sign of hope, and there is to be truthful compared to what there was 25 years ago, it’s because of what you’ve done and what you’ve done for young people,” he said. “Young people around the world are really, really going for it now because of you.The world owes you a lot and I hope you are not paying too high a price for it, and it looks from what you are saying that you are managing to survive alright.”

He said that his television work and Ms Thunberg’s campaigning had helped to shape public opinion and demand politicians take action. “We have to understand that if we are going to do something it is going to cost taxes and we are going to have to give up as well as take,” he said. “In the end it has to be a political decision to save the world. There has to be give and take between nations and the electorate. “If you’re faced with a crisis of the proportion of the epidemic they’re facing, it’s difficult to lift your eyes from immediate problems. But we have to do that, we really, really have to do that and I think the future of the world depends on it.”

Ms Thunberg, who was speaking from her home in Sweden, voiced her frustration at how her fame often meant people are talking about her instead of about the issues she has raised through her activism. Speaking about the climate crisis she said: “It just escalated so much, and it feels like instead of focusing on the actual fire, we were spending all our time debating about the fire alarm.”“It takes away focus from the climate process. “All we are trying to do is raise public awareness and create public opinion. It is after all public opinion which runs the free world and that is one of the biggest sources of hope right now. “If enough people become aware and if enough people put enough pressure on people in power and the elected officials then they will have to do something because the politicians job is to get elected and to do as the voters ask.”

Ms Thunberg also praised Sir David, saying when he speaks, everybody listens. “When I saw your new film, I was positively surprised how it connected all these issues, like the climate crisis, loss of biodiversity, loss of soil and over-fishing,” she said. “We fail today so much to connect these issues. These are all symptoms of one big sustainability and environmental crisis; we can’t just tackle one.”

This offers a chance for us to write to papers and local media as well as The Independent to state the benefits of Carbon Fee and Dividend. We can point out that this July Greta Thunberg (20/8/20) stated that two years had been wasted since her first climate strike. CCL believes that  politicians have feared short term pain but needn’t, as there is a carbon pricing policy which would facilitate the move to zero emissions without losing votes or hurting the less well off. Climate Income (aka Carbon Fee and Dividend, CFD) is a policy championed internationally by various Citizens Climate Lobbies, with growing support among scientists, economists and think tanks. It has already been adopted in Canada and Switzerland and is well regarded by both parties in the US.

CFD proposes an escalating fee on all import or extraction of fossil fuels, thus incentivising greener technologies without the need for punitive tariffs. The proceeds are shared equally between all citizens as a quarterly dividend, helping to offset the interim rising cost of fossil fuels. Wealthier consumers are encouraged to green their choices, and investors are given a clear message about the direction of travel. CFD would speed up the current market led move to renewables and divestment. Our leaders cannot waste any more time in inaction. We cannot waste any time avoiding the realpolitik that is a bedrock for any coming change. Instead, we can count ourselves lucky that there is a solution that is both highly effective and politically possible.

There is further information about the benefits of CFD in the policy section of the website, and advice on writing to the media in the Action section. Good luck!

Hopeful news from the Conservative Conference

by

Abridged text of an article in yesterday’s Guardian…
Boris Johnson will promise to power every home in the UK with offshore wind energy within a decade, pledging to make the coronavirus pandemic a catalyst for green growth. In a speech to the virtual Conservative party conference on Tuesday, he will say that the government will invest in a clean energy future to create “hundreds of thousands, if not millions of jobs” in the next decade.

 

The prime minister said the UK would “become the world leader in low-cost clean power generation – cheaper than coal and gas”, comparing the UK’s resources in offshore wind to Saudi Arabia’s oil wealth.

“We believe that in 10 years’ time offshore wind will be powering every home in the country, with our target rising from 30 gigawatts to 40 gigawatts,” he will say. “Your kettle, your washing machine, your cooker, your heating, your plug-in electric vehicle – the whole lot of them will get their juice cleanly and without guilt from the breezes that blow around these islands.”The government has come under fire in recent months for failing to set out plans for a green recovery that would put the UK on track to meet its goal of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Apart from £3bn for insulating homes, there were no green measures in the Covid-19 recovery plan. No 10 said the pledge was the first step in a 10-point “Build Back Greener” plan, which the prime minister would set out later in the year and includes new targets and investment into industries, innovation and infrastructure.

Johnson will say that the government will invest £160m in manufacturing the next generation of turbines, including floating windmills capable of delivering 1GW of energy by 2030, over 15 times the current floating offshore volumes worldwide. Downing Street said the initial investment would rapidly create about 2,000 construction jobs and enable the sector to support up to 60,000 jobs directly and indirectly by 2030 in ports, factories and the supply chains….Johnson said the target would help the UK reach its target of net zero by 2050 – a target which has been criticised by campaigners as under-ambitious.

The boost for offshore wind was welcomed by green campaigners, who urged him to go further with his plans by providing incentives for electric vehicles and other low-carbon infrastructure….The announcement of the Build Back Greener plan is tentatively scheduled for November and is expected to follow the advice set out by the Committee on Climate Change, including support for the UK’s nascent clean hydrogen industry to help cut carbon emissions from homes and heavy industry.

This is a golden opportunity to point out to the Guardian or a local paper (and indirectly the government) how Carbon Fee and Dividend could make such plans easier to achieve without subsidies, and to namedrop CCL! Why not have a look at our advice on writing to the media and give it a go!

 

How can climate income help fix climate chaos?

by


Making fossil fuels more expensive can look like a difficult and unpopular decision for the government to have to make, but it will be necessary if we are to get rid of the worst offenders of greenhouse gas emissions and fix climate chaos.

At our September 2020 monthly online meeting, Josh Burke (London School of Economics), discusses the carrots and sticks involved in weaning Britain off oil and gas, and who in government we have to convince.

Watch a recording of the meeting above.

Key points:

  • Work with special advisers to government, and convince the Treasury dept – it’s a civil service/treasury culture rather than politically led. Policy makers are used to a rigid structure and a climate income plays out of the box.
  • Other European countries have pledged more money to tackle climate change – will the government earmark enough in the next budget? ‘They aren’t willing to take the difficult decisions to keep the cost low’ to UK citizens – a difficult decision such as a carbon fee that returns the money to the people ie a climate income.
  • UK Gov is looking at a UK emissions trading system linked with the EU. Failing that, a standalone ETS, then, failing that, a carbon tax.
  • Introducing any kind of taxation is a difficult ‘goose to pluck’ so governments like to keep the money and do what they like with it, but people will be more willing to accept higher prices if they aren’t any worse off financially (and, of course, fixing air pollution and climate change will mean calmer and healthier lives and long term prosperity).
  • A climate income would need to be supported by an advance payment (as Canada did) and effective communication eg save the extra money as you will need it for higher prices/switching to clean energy.
  • Coal has been (mostly) phased out through a combination of regulation, subsidy and taxation.
  • An upstream tax should be mostly employed (ie to business not consumer) but sometimes downstream is better at flagging the need for a change in behaviour – eg frequent flyer levy.

Click here to register for future monthly meetings.

Another two years lost to climate inaction, says Greta Thunberg

by

Two years on from Greta Thunberg’s first solo school strike for the climate, in an interview with the Guardian Greta says the world has wasted the time by failing to take the necessary action on the crisis. ..

“Looking back [over two years], a lot has happened. Many millions have taken to the streets … and on 28 November 2019, the European parliament declared a climate and environmental emergency, But over these last two years, the world has also emitted over 80bn tonnes of CO2. We have seen continuous natural disasters taking place across the globe. Many lives and livelihoods have been lost, and this is only the very beginning.They said leaders were speaking of an “existential crisis”, yet “when it comes to action, we are still in a state of denial. The gap between what we need to do and what’s actually being done is widening by the minute. Effectively, we have lost another two crucial years to political inaction.”….

One of our media team members, Gareth Ackland, has written a letter to the Guardian in response to this article which is a good summary of our position on climate change and how to solve it:

Greta Thunberg’s disappointment in our leaders is justified, and felt by environmentalists everywhere. It’s not that those leaders are committed to harming the planet, but they are clearly reluctant to make changes they fear may harm their economies, upset business, entrench poverty or otherwise derail their reelection hopes. Only a policy that deals with both climate and politics can hope to be applied. Climate Income (aka Carbon Fee and Dividend) is a policy championed by the Citizens Climate Lobby, with growing support among scientists, economists and think tanks. It proposes a fee on all import or extraction of fossil fuels. The fee rises over time, and all proceeds are shared equally between all citizens as a quarterly dividend.

As businesses shift toward renewables, the least well off 70% find their dividend is worth more than any consumer price rises. Also, wealthier consumers are encouraged to green their choices, and investors are given a clear message about the direction of travel. Environmental hopes are already piling up. Renewables are producing a larger share of energy needs, fossil fuel firms are shrinking their asset values while diversifying and the divestment movement is growing. But damage is piling up faster. With the right policies, hopes can outpace damage, and eventually beat it into retreat.

Our leaders cannot waste any more time in inaction. We cannot waste any time avoiding the realpolitik that is a bedrock for any coming change. Instead, we can count ourselves lucky that there is a solution that is both highly effective and politically possible.

100 Economists call for an end to the Carbon Economy

by

Now or never…. 100 prominent international economists have written and signed a hard hitting letter (published on 4th August in the Guardian and elsewhere) arguing that….

From deep-rooted racism to the Covid-19 pandemic, from extreme inequality to ecological collapse, our world is facing dire and deeply interconnected emergencies. But as much as the present moment painfully underscores the weaknesses of our economic system, it also gives us the rare opportunity to reimagine it. As we seek to rebuild our world, we can and must end the carbon economy.

Keeping the momentum going after the Virtual lobby….

by

At the moment the Government’s Recovery Plans are on the front pages, if you were unable to do so during the Time is Now lobby why not  take this opportunity to email your MP to ask why the Government doesn’t want to adopt CF and D when it can see the benefits (see news June 4th and June 12th).  Also consider writing a letter to your local media or favourite national paper, (see Action section). You may find a current article on either the recovery plan or other ’green issues’ as a hook you can respond to. Here is an example of a response to an article in the Independent on a poll on ‘going green’….The letter wasn’t published, why not see if you can break the stranglehold of letters on the pandemic and get yours in a paper!

In Millions of Britons cannot afford to ‘go green’ poll claims Emma Elsworthy reports that 59% of 2000 adults said their budget would not allow them to be any ‘greener’. Government policies such as the Climate Change Levy and Green Deal have ‘fuelled’ this assumption but there is a policy which would make ‘going green’ a no brainer for businesses and consumers. 

This policy, Carbon Fee and Dividend or ‘Climate Income’, places escalating fees on fossil fuel extraction, rendering renewable energy comparably cheaper. Import fees on fossil fuels or products will ensure they won’t undermine the market. The income derived from the carbon fees would go directly to the populace as a ‘dividend’. It has already been adopted in Switzerland and Canada, and is being considered seriously by many countries around the world. 

Our Government in its recent report The Future of UK Carbon Pricing acknowledges the merits of the policy but does not propose to adopt it at this time, preferring to continue with an emissions reduction policy, despite acknowledging that: 

Placing a price on carbon creates the incentive for emissions to be reduced in a cost effective and technology-neutral way, while mobilising the private sector to invest in emissions reduction technologies and measures.

With all the current talk of kick starting the economy, building greener and supporting those hardest hit by the pandemic, the time is now to ask the Government to reconsider! For further information and to join our campaign see: https://citizensclimatelobby.uk/

Let’s keep up the pressure, make people more aware of the potential of Climate Income  and keep your MP on his toes!

Catherine Dawson

13/7/20

Virtual lobby: question

by

Ask your MP:

“This month, I/we were really pleased to see that the government recognised the ‘merits’ of a carbon fee and dividend in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, crucial in tackling climate change.

This was stated by the department of agriculture, environment and rural affairs in an official response to the results of a carbon pricing consultation they commissioned last year.

Can you tell me/us why the department said they do ‘not propose to adopt it at this time’?”

 

Sign up for the lobby

If you haven’t signed up for the climate lobby, there’s still time.

Sign up (via The Climate Coalition) and then email your MP. If your MP is running a session, they will add you to the list of participants and let you know how to join.

Can’t take part?

If you can’t take part, you can also retweet, Facebook share or email your MP with the question, and link to the report itself.

It’s amazing progress…

…for the government to ‘recognise the merits of a Carbon Fee and Dividend policy’ (aka Climate Income).

But now we want to know why they ‘do not propose to adopt it at this time’.

No reasons were given – and we won’t be fobbed off!

To gain the best answer from your MP, email your question, with a link to the report, in advance – they may have a chance to research their answer, rather than react to it on the hoof.

Want to talk it through?

We are running a Zoom call tomorrow evening (Monday) at 8pm to talk this through. At the end, there will be an introduction to CCL and climate income for new members. Please email for details information.

Essential information

Have this information at hand when you ask your question

For your MP:

Where did the government talk about carbon fee and dividend?
This month, the department of agriculture, environment and rural affairs gave a response to the results of the Future of UK Carbon Pricing, a consultation they commissioned which ran until July last year.

Where, in the response, is carbon fee and dividend mentioned?
Menu item, ‘A note on carbon fee and dividend’, page 38 (see section below for the wording).

What is carbon fee and dividend?
Direct them to this webpage: test.citizensclimatelobby.uk/policy-makers

  • A fee is placed on fossil fuels as they are extracted, or enter the UK. This rises each year until it is high enough to make burning fossil fuels uneconomical.
  • The money collected is given back as a climate income equally to UK people; all adults receive the same amount, half for children.
  • When fossil fuels are exported by UK businesses the fee is rebated. Countries with a similar carbon fee importing fossil fuels into the UK will not have to pay the UK fee.

How does carbon fee and dividend/climate income work?
Different MPs will be interested in different aspects of carbon fee and dividend – one of the reasons it’s such a strong policy.

  • It makes fossil fuels uneconomical and so removes their use.
  • It supports UK household incomes (between two thirds and four fifths of households) and vulnerable people by giving them a financial cushion during the transition to clean energy.
  • It supports business by allowing them to plan for the change to clean energy and stimulates investment in clean energy.
  • It will cost the government NOTHING.
  • US and Swiss research suggests ALL greenhouse gas emissions would be cut by this policy alone by 40 percent in nine years.
  • It would reduce emissions worldwide by encouraging the rest of the world to have a similar fee on fossil fuels – why would they want to pay a fee to the UK when they could keep it themselves?

For you:

If your MP says they do not know why the government is not adopting a carbon fee and dividend, ask them to find out why and write back to you.

The aim of the question
To press the government for valid reasons to their rejection of carbon fee and dividend, because none were given.
This will, at the least, allow CCL to address their objections or, at best, pressure them into reconsidering their rejection. If we keep up the heat, a ‘no’ can change to yes!

Why did the government single out CCL UK / carbon fee and dividend?
A significant number of CCL UK members took part in the consultation, so the ensuing report of results (released last year) devoted a section to both CCL UK and carbon fee and dividend. A year later, in their response to the results, the department of the environment gave their current stance on carbon fee and dividend.
NB: there was a government consultation on UK carbon pricing, then a report of the results of the consultation, then a government response to the results of the consultation.

Why are we calling it carbon fee & dividend, not climate income?
Although CCL UK calls the policy the more friendly ‘climate income’, the term we use with policy makers is the original name, ‘carbon fee and dividend’.

But isn’t this bad news: a rejection of carbon fee and dividend?
We think it’s real progress – an official government report has recognised the ‘merits’ of CF&D. But simply saying they don’t want to adopt it, is, to be frank, quite lazy – both in lack of reasoning and in effecting a serious reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The current system (the mostly ineffective Emission Reduction System) is ok and raising taxes is problematic so, they will be asking themselves, why make life harder? At the moment the government probably thinks CF&D is too big a change to bother with what might appear to be a risky gamble. We have to keep on with the message that this is supported by Nobel prize winning economists and the like – it is not just a good idea from a few people. It’s a real opportunity for on-the-ball CCL members. The government underestimates us if they think we will be fobbed off with such a casual brush off. Or maybe they thought we simply wouldn’t notice the report..?

Word for Word

Relevant section from “The future of UK carbon pricing – UK Government and Devolved Administrations’ response”

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/889037/Government_Response_to_Consultation_on_Future_of_UK_Carbon_Pricing.pdf

Page 38, ‘A Note on Carbon Fee and Dividend’

Summary of responses

199.  31 consultation responses from non-participants suggested the adoption of a Carbon Fee and Dividend approach as an alternative policy [to a UK Emissions Trading Scheme].

200.  The Carbon Fee and Dividend approach involves introducing an escalating fee on fossil fuels, which is imposed as close to the extraction point of the fuel as possible. 100% of the funds raised after deduction of administration costs are redistributed to the population. Business competitiveness issues are mitigated by imposing import fees on products entering the country and rebates to exporting businesses. Advocates of the approach highlight that a well-designed scheme would have social and environmental benefits, equitably distributing the revenues and stimulating investment in low carbon technologies.

UK Government’s and Devolved Administrations’ response
201.  The preferred approach, expressed by the UK Government and Devolved Administrations in the consultation document and supported by scheme participants, is for an effective emissions reduction tool. Placing a price on carbon creates the incentive for emissions to be reduced in a cost effective and technology-neutral way, while mobilising the private sector to invest in emissions reduction technologies and measures. While we recognise the merits of a Carbon Fee and Dividend policy, we do not propose to adopt it at this time.

EU climate target consultation

by

 

Anyone can take part in this consultation, EU and non-EU citizens. Deadline is coming up, though: Tuesday 23rd June.

“The European Green Deal aims to make Europe the world’s first climate-neutral continent. To this end, the Commission intends to increase the EU’s 2030 target for greenhouse gas emission reductions to at least -50% and towards -55% compared to 1990 levels. Revising the current 2030 target upwards puts us on a more gradual pathway towards becoming climate-neutral by 2050. It also helps to pace and focus transition efforts from now until 2050 and ensure EU’s leadership role in addressing global challenges in a sustainable way.

The consultation aims to collect opinions on the desired ambition level of climate and energy policies, necessary actions in different sectors and specific policy design to increase climate ambition by 2030. It also aims to gather further information, including roadmaps, policy briefs and studies relevant for deeper greenhouse gas emission reductions.”

If you want to show your support for a Climate Income (as the best way to reduce almost half of greenhouse houses quickly, fairly and while supporting the economy), CCL EU has put together guidance on how to fill it in.

Or here is the direct link to the consultation.