Tackling climate change will be the “absolute priority” of an incoming Labour government, John McDonnell has pledged.
The shadow chancellor, in a speech in the City of London yesterday, said the main focus of the Treasury under a Labour government would be to prepare a policy programme to fight climate change. And he pledged to harness the “full might” of the department to achieve this goal.
“To achieve this objective, we are marshalling the resources and levers of power available to the Treasury to fund and drive the climate change emergency programme.”
McDonnell also said that all of Labour’s shadow ministerial teams have been charged with producing programmes of action setting out their departments’ contribution to lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
“With the real prospect of an autumn election, we want to be fully prepared to roll out this climate change emergency programme as soon as we take over the controls of government.”
And he said that Labour is keen to bring forward the target date for achieving net zero emissions from 2050, adding that he has invited representatives from Extinction Rebellion to brief the Treasury shadow ministerial team on tackling the climate crisis.
McDonnell said he is also meeting representatives from the National Infrastructure Commission to explore the links between its programme and the Committee on Climate Change’s proposals for reform.
“The target is to secure net zero carbon emissions by at least 2050. We aim to be as ambitious as possible in seeking to bring that target date forward.”
He said the Financial Policy Committee of the Bank of England will be given tools to tackle the risk to financial stability stemming from investments in polluting assets, which could be left “stranded” by decarbonisation.
And he announced a review into how the finance system operates vis-à-vis climate issues.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn recently appointed Danielle Rowley as the party’s first ever shadow minister for climate justice and green jobs. Announcing the appointment on Twitter, Corbyn said the she will work closely with environmental activists to maintain pressure on the government to combat climate change.
Yesterday evening (24 June) MPs voted to approve an amendment to the 2008 Climate Change Act setting a legally binding target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050.