The Last Chance Saloon?

By EssentialsMAG environment contributor ROB RENOUF

We’re rapidly approaching the mid-point of this decade which will be critical in determining the severity of the impacts of the climate and ecological emergency. The UK Climate Change Committee’s latest annual assessment published at the end of June says, “our confidence in the UK meeting its medium-term targets has decreased in the past year”. Once again, their clear message is that our politicians are still not doing enough, meaning we’re increasingly unlikely to be where we need to be by 2030.

So what can we actually do about this?

In Wales, we’ll have Senedd elections in 2026, but the scope of devolved powers is limited. We no longer have the opportunity to vote in European elections and affect what happens there. The upcoming UK general election, therefore, represents our only real opportunity to influence much of what will happen in the remainder of this crucial decade.

Beyond the election, our voices are less likely to be heard and our ability to protest has been severely restricted by recent legislation.

How we vote in the election will clearly be critical, but we don’t have to wait until then.

One option is to get involved in an election campaign; another is to try to influence the parties’ manifestos.

You may have noticed ideas being floated by political parties and in some cases hastily rowed back - in the coming months they’ll decide which policies will form their offer to the electorate.

I’ve been working with colleagues in Climate Cymru on a list of things we’ll be asking all political parties to include in their manifestos. No doubt, those opposed to climate action will also be lobbying. If you have a view on what our politicians should do, now is the time to tell them.

Polling indicates that most of us are concerned about the climate and ecological emergency and want the government to do more. However, research also suggests that our support for action can prove fragile once we’re presented with lifestyle and cost implications. It’s therefore perhaps understandable that our politicians may be nervous about proposing bolder action.

They may believe we’re enthusiastic about environmental action in theory, but not in reality. The messages we give politicians in the next few months will be critical - if we genuinely want them to do more to tackle the climate and ecological emergency, we need to make this clear to them right now.

EssentialsMAG environment contributor is Rob Renouf robsrenouf@gmail.com