LOCAL MANIFESTO 2021
DRAFT
Not for distribution
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Merseyside Labour for a Green New Deal provides a focal point for Labour Party and trade union members on Merseyside to mobilise around the climate crisis with the goal of seeing the region transition to a net zero carbon economy by 2030. To achieve these ends, we work to:
• Share information with Labour Party and trade union members and the broader public • Facilitate and amplify the voice of an informed public to create a democratic consensus on how to tackle key issues • Actively include the marginalised voices that have too often been excluded from the climate debate • Campaign and lobby our elected representatives both locally and nationally
Context
Contents
4
8
Jobs
Topics
6
Foreword
14
Green Space: Land Use and Communities
20
Race and Climate Justice
Introduction
10
Housing and the Built Environment
16
12
Energy
18
Transport
Health
22
24
Learning
Waste
26
What now?
Democracy
28
Next Steps
31
Motion for a Green New Deal on Merseyside
5
32
References
Introduction
First developed as a response
Carbon Manifesto for Merseyside, to think through what a local green new deal might look like. After an initial panel of speakers, Labour Party members, trade unionists and members of the public discussed their vision of a sustainable future for Merseyside in a series of themed workshops. Each workshop focussed on an aspect of society that a Green New Deal could address and the ideas shared have informed the content of this manifesto, with the workshop topics also providing the chapter structure. Since that event, the way we live has been transformed beyond recognition by COVID-19, whilst the killing of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis police has seen a surge in activity of the Black Lives Matter movement and emphasised the pressing need for genuine racial justice.
to the 2008 economic crisis by a group of economists and climate activists, the Green New Deal was inspired by Franklin D Roosevelt’s New Deal of the 1930s. However, whilst FDR’s transformational programme utilised job creation, reskilling and tree planting to address the problems arising from the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, the Green New Deal responds to the climate crisis by introducing measures to reduce carbon emissions and rebuild the economy after years of austerity and the devastating impacts of a global pandemic. In early 2019, Labour for a Green New Deal launched to ensure that Labour Party members and politicians were aware of the importance of a climate policy that offered a transformative vision for a socialist future. Merseyside Labour for a Green New Deal (MLGND) formed shortly after and, that summer, we held an open event, Building a Zero-
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A Green New Deal is now even more urgent – racial justice, economic stimulus and radical visions for the future are needed more than ever. The goal of a net-zero economy has implications across all sectors and industries. A fundamental transformation of the economy - a “just transition” to good green jobs and healthy communities with improved and more sustainable lifestyles is the demand. These gains will not be automatic, but neither are they fanciful. They were some of the most popular elements of Labour’s 2019 manifesto and it is vital we remain committed to them even whilst acknowledging that the devastating election result was a significant setback. With Labour weakened nationally, there has been an increased focus on the places where Labour does hold power, including in many Merseyside local authorities. It is now down to councils and the City Region to build on work already undertaken and lead the way in developing and implementing a regional Green New Deal. We are the last generation with the ability to significantly mitigate the level of global temperature
rise that subsequent generations will face. We cannot be passive bystanders. We know what is needed and have the technology, resources and ingenuity to achieve it; it is just social, political and institutional barriers that remain to be overcome. Although inherently political, this manifesto is neither Labour policy nor just for Labour voters. As workers, campaigners and citizens we need to come together with politicians, scientists and community groups to consider how we best overcome these obstacles and mitigate the effects of the catastrophe that we face. Finally, it is important to remember that climate justice is a journey, not a destination; our hope is that this manifesto is useful as a signpost pointing us in the direction we need to go. MLGND - January 2021
Merseyside Labour for a green New deal 7
Jobs
Photo: Alan Gibbons
Decarbonising our society with
energy efficiency are prioritised over fossil fuels. Transport workers will be affected as we reduce car use and adopt active transport, increase electric vehicle manufacturing, and more bus services are implemented. Increased adoption of automation will further impact on both transport and haulage. Construction work will call on new skills as a result of retrofit and insulation projects that incorporate solar panels and/or wind turbines. Meanwhile, the health impacts of climate change will demand more care workers. Decarbonisation will also see
a Green New Deal will have implications throughout the entire economy and union involvement therefore needs to be central. The discussion in the public meeting echoed parts of the conversations undertaken about democracy, and worker representation on company boards was felt to be key. The interconnected nature of the green new deal means that the impact on jobs will be across diverse sectors. The energy industry will be transformed as renewables and 8
sectors such as aviation become almost entirely unworkable in their present form. On Merseyside, social deprivation and poverty as a result of years of Tory underinvestment have already created a larger unskilled labour force than the national average. Therefore, the Combined City Region Authority needs a coordinated skills strategy, including training for all ages to react to these changes. There are a huge range of employment opportunities across the social and civic sectors that require skilling, development and training. Engineers will be needed for the construction and maintenance of wind farms and electric vehicles, and construction workers required who specialise in retrofit and energy-efficient building work. Other sectors that will see expansion include forestry for tree-planting and work on green spaces – park staff, community gardeners and workers to grow more food locally will all be required – whilst a long overdue reprioritisation of the low carbon care and teaching sectors is vital. A skilled labour force is essential to undertake this work. Industry will experience significant
Proposals for Merseyside • Offer union co-developed climate apprenticeships including for care work, a central tenet of the Green New Deal.1 • Develop the Merseyside Tidal Barrage locally, using it to support local manufacturing and business. • Borrow and invest in climate projects that create jobs. • Focus on community wealth building and the Preston Model to develop local procurement strategies for all the City Region. • Introduce construction guidelines / regulation for newbuilds & retrofit. transformation and the workers most affected must be guaranteed employment in the zero-carbon economy of the future. This means creating jobs and offering reskilling, training and climate apprenticeships. A just transition to green jobs will transform not just the work we do, but offer an opportunity to also reconfigure how we work and spend our time - a 4-day week is a tangible consequence of such reconfiguration. 9
Housing and the Built Environment
Photo: Britt Jurgensen
Domestic households are
36% of homes in the Liverpool City Region are appropriately insulated,4 it is clear that this is not just an issue of carbon emissions, it is also one of health and social justice. Labour’s Warm Homes for All proposals outlined a series of measures that would reduce the UK’s CO2 emissions by 10%, prevent 1,500 deaths a year and eradicate the vast majority of fuel poverty, saving an average of £417 for low income households.5 When most of the houses that we’ll inhabit in 2040 are already built,6 the importance of retrofitting these homes by
responsible for 15 percent of greenhouse gas emissions1 and therefore reducing energy use in homes through improved insulation and domestic power generation is key to tackling the climate crisis. Such measures would potentially create 450 000 jobs in the UK,2 whilst helping the 12% of households in the city region who struggle with fuel poverty.3 Nationally, the impossible choice between heating and eating means an average of 9,700 excess winter deaths are attributable to living in a cold home. When only 10
installing insulation and making them less draughty is clear. Other essential measures include installing LED bulbs and ensuring that appliances are energy efficient. Data from 2018 shows that, nationally, at least 26 million homes need retrofitting.7 With an average cost of £9,300 per house, a project of such scale means that subsidies from national government are essential. These subsidies should be passed to homeowners and landlords in the form of grants or loans that are then, where it can be afforded, repaid with the savings made on bills. As identified in the People Power Retrofit report from Carbon Co-op and Urbed,7 even when financial support is available and people are interested in retrofitting their homes, barriers to the uptake of green technology remain. Often the sheer complexity of installing multiple technologies is a deterrent that is compounded by a lack of practical information. To improve uptake we therefore need to both raise awareness and provide support and guidance for retrofitting. Councils could provide a free and impartial service that
advises on the changes that can be made, as well as the cost, what’s involved in their implementation and the benefits. Councils should also develop a planning policy for the redevelopment of existing buildings whilst working with Local Planning Authorities to identify sites. To build retrofitting capacity for such an extensive programme, onsite training and apprenticeships for workers, as well as contractor guidance on installing green technology is vital. Proposals for Merseyside • Adapt the Landlord Licensing scheme to influence retrofitting for renters • Ensure new build houses meet eco-standards so we don’t need to also retrofit new housing stock • Utilise the knowledge of semiretired professionals to support up-skilling and apprenticeships • Introduce rainwater recycling • Target industrial units - address the biggest polluters first • Install solar panels on municipal buildings - schools and multi-story car parks - as well as housing association roofs 11
Energy
Photo: Artists 4 Corbyn: The People will Possess the Wind
The city region’s carbon emissions
Consumption based emissions (which are often generated elsewhere) are not shown. A Green New Deal will see a significant reduction in the demand for energy and heat, as well as a switch to renewables. Merseyside has two very significant potential sources of renewable energy, offshore wind and tidal, whilst onshore wind and solar can also be further developed. We should not rely on the tidal barrage alone. At the meeting, it was emphasised that the energy used in the region is a natural monopoly and a public good and that a municipal energy
are primarily produced by heating and powering three key sectors:
Fig 1: Figures from Friends of the Earth 1
Fig 1 shows emissions from sources located within the city region or those that arise from the direct use of heat or electricity. 12
company would best manage this. Problems with Nottingham’s Robin Hood Energy2 have highlighted the issues around creating a sustainable business model for municipal energy supply, and when current legislation prohibits a single entity from both generating and supplying energy, the model established by The Leccy will need revisiting if it is to incorporate generation. Nevertheless, the potential for local generation is huge; it should not be left to the private sector. Whilst a single council may struggle to find the resources
for municipal generation, if the Combined Authority and other key stakeholders go into partnership it becomes more manageable. Housing associations and councils could create a customer base supplied by locally owned generation. By owning renewable energy sources, the revenues and surplus generated will circulate in the local economy, running it for public benefit not private profit. It was also noted that the city region’s Sustainable Energy Action Plan (SEAP) dates from 2012 – a working group should develop and implement a new plan.
How to pay for it? Possible ways to finance investment in muncipally owned energy infrastructure include: • The Merseyside Pension Fund manages assets of £8.88 billion – a proportion of this could be divested from fossil fuels.3 • The Northwest Community Bank – a collaboration between Liverpool, Wirral and Preston5 has a clear role to play. • A Tourist Tax could be ringfenced for climate action. • Council Tax hikes could also be ring-fenced for a Climate
Action Fund similar to how money is currently allocated to the Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner and the Fire and Rescue Authority. • Community Municipal Investment (CMI), developed by the platform Abundance, allows individuals to invest in councils.4 • The Public Works Loan Board was historically a common way for authorities to raise finance. • A consortium of large energy consumers – local councils, the NHS, Network Rail, etc – could kickstart the development of a locally owned supply company. 13
Green Space: Land Use and Communities
Photo: Val Walsh
The climate emergency requires
This can be achieved through legislation, the socialisation of land ownership and community involvement in planning. Across Merseyside, there has been a degradation of green space as transport, commercial and property developments have been prioritised. Local campaigns such as Rimrose Valley Friends1 and Friends of Oglet Shore2 have been fighting hard to protect these precious resources and whilst many have had success, nearly all the successes are under threat of future review. Fundamental change is required to tip the rebalance of power towards that
us to immediately overhaul land use. The way we use land will play a pivotal role in mitigating the effects of climate change and both preserving and restoring the ecological systems that we inhabit. As well as cultivating biodiversity, green spaces are vital for local food production, as social spaces, places for exercise and as part of a beautiful and nourishing environment in which to work and live. The merits of land as a public good must be placed above financial value when considering land use. 14
of the people rather than profit and “growth” and to favour long term environmental stability. Current laws significantly favour developers, but even within the current system education on how the public can intervene in planning processes would present opportunities. More work is also needed when it comes to listening
to communities and ensuring they are central to planning decisions. Such efforts, as part of a fundamentally democratic Green New Deal, will build support for radical change and resilience against the fierce opposition that will inevitably follow from those developers and businesses that wish to profit from land assets.
Proposals for Merseyside • A mapping of land ownership is desperately needed3 and, where appropriate, unused land should be acquired for common ownership by local communities for low impact food production, increasing biodiversity, green energy and recreation. • Identify land for allotments, recreation and the reintroduction of plants and wildlife. • Introduce an extensive tree planting programme across the region and embed carbon capture, ecological restoration and flood prevention in our communities. • All citizens should have access to green spaces within walking distance. By introducing further protections councils can ensure green space in less wealthy constituencies is prioritised.
• In Liverpool, work being done with partners such as Fields in Trust (to protect parks in perpetuity) and Scouse Flowerhouse (on wildflower planting across the city) is to be applauded and built on. • Green space developments must have an emphasis on increased and resilient biodiversity, as well as offering amenities for people’s wellbeing. • Many “Friends of…” groups already facilitate community engagement with the regions’ parks, but their work should be expanded on to create forums in which people can discuss and decide on planning and public land use more broadly. This process must be supported with a wide range of expertise that includes professional facilitation as well as guidance on how to rehabilitate ecosystems.
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Transport
As well as facilitating access to
heart attacks, strokes and respiratory problems and result in 1,000 further deaths each year.3 Whilst taxis and community car pools may have a role to play, simply shifting to electric cars is not the solution. Everybody should be able to live well without needing to own a car. The shift from private car dependency towards public transport and walking and cycling will create fundamentally nicer places to live. However, as well as introducing infrastructure, we need behavioural change strategies and to establish links with campaigning groups.
employment, education, green space and healthcare, transport systems are also key to community participation. The Green New Deal will see the creation of an efficient and affordable net-zero system that is accessible to everyone. Our current transport system is inefficient, unequal, and deadly, and overly favours individual mobility. Transport produces 27.5% of carbon emissions in the city region1 whilst 449 people were killed or seriously injured on our roads in 20192. Air pollution from petrol and diesel engines cause mental health problems, 16
Proposals for Merseyside
• Park and Ride – across all the Merseyrail network • Car free days – replicate the success of Wavertree’s event in other neighbourhoods across the city • Low Traffic Neighbourhoods – work with communities to make residential areas more liveable for people by reducing car use. As of late 2020, the government is looking for 12 local authority areas, one of which must be in the city region, that they’ll support to become exemplar Low Traffic Neighbourhood councils4 • Copy Manchester(!) – Learn from the Made to Move strategy5 and the Bee Network6. Build on the findings of the recent Bikelife report7 and build an integrated cycling network • Parking – Working with disability groups, remove on-street parking from city and town centres where possible, leaving purpose built multi-storeys. Rigorously enforce pavement parking penalties • Transform – Merseyrail and bus networks to operate on principals of democratic public ownership and for public benefit not private profit • Taxis – Convert all taxis to electric or fuel cell vehicles • Last Mile Freight – To be delivered by cargo bike or other similar low emission vehicles • Vision Zero – The Combined Authority and councils to adopt the Vision Zero approach to road safety8 whilst drawing from the Global Street Design Guide9 • 20 mph speed limits – on all residential streets and review speed limits across the city region 17
Health
Climate breakdown is a severe
the hottest since records began in 1850,1 and the summer heat waves of 2019 resulted in nearly 900 more premature deaths than is usual in the UK.2 The changing climate also affects the spread of diseases carried by insects and cold-blooded animals,3 whilst the effects on fresh water and food supplies of increased drought are well recorded. Poor air quality leads to 36,000 premature deaths across the UK every year – more than those caused by obesity or alcohol – and is often significantly worse in lower income areas. In January 2020, a report by King’s College and UKE
threat to human health. Basic necessities – clean air, safe drinking water, sufficient food and shelter – are all at risk. Protection and promotion of good health is a key aim of the Green New Deal and a rethinking of public health strategy is a central proposal. Growing consumption leaves a trail of toxic pollution and leads to a collapse of natural systems. Rising global temperatures are having a range of effects on health and each heat wave causes a significant number of premature deaths both at home and abroad. The last five years have been 18
100 found that air pollution across the City Region had led to over 1,000 additional deaths.4 Covid-19 has exacerbated many of the public health issues that we face, and highlighted the significantly poorer health outcomes faced by people of colour and the working class. A Green New Deal provides the tools to start to address such health injustices. A Green New Deal will grant workers greater power over their material circumstances. Shorter working hours will allow more time for developing relationships with family, friends and communities, and allow for the exploration of creative potential. The effects of this on the physical and mental health of those who are currently overworked, underpaid and precariously employed cannot be overstated. A more progressive vision of health lies at the heart of the Green New Deal. Currently, health is understood as the product of consumer choices – chips or salad, gym or pub – and bad health results from poor decisions made because of individual moral weakness. This narrow view excludes social, economic
and political factors and doesn’t acknowledge the communal aspects of good health.
“... health is not an individual outcome, but arises from social cohesion, community ties, and mutual support.”5 Gabor Maté
By embedding health frameworks within wider departments of local government – such as transport, housing, education – health and wellbeing become ends in themselves, not just a pathway to a stronger economy as they are too often understood. What a Green New Deal can offer • Improved insulation and heating would help address the illness and deaths arising from fuel poverty • Active travel and improved public transport will tackle air pollution • Improved access to green spaces will improve people’s physical and mental health • Training and support for care work jobs will help tackle the social care crisis we face 19
Race and Climate Justice
Photo: Alan Gibbons
Climate justice is concerned
poorest and ethnic minorities. At the public event, Dan Carden, with challenging structural and institutional racism, which includes MP for Liverpool Walton and then Shadow Minister for International the position and experiences of Development, spoke of the need asylum seekers and refugees, as for a world with a fairer global well as the overlapping issues economy, not one that only sees of class and gender. A Green economic value. New Deal is fundamentally internationalist in scope. The system as it stands is not fit for purpose and global aid Aspects around race are often campaigns are in need of urgent lost in environmental discussions transformation. Too often, these and yet, whilst the climate crisis act as instruments of soft power is a global concern that affects all that reinforce the image of a people, everywhere, it tends to subordinate and subservient most impact women and people 1 global south2 whilst the countries of colour, whilst other negative receiving aid end up paying back outcomes such as air pollution vastly more than they receive. disproportionately affect the 20
Climate reparations provide a more just form of financial support, given that many of the countries most affected by climate change are suffering the effects of historic pollution from the north and saw significant wealth extracted through colonisation. Such trends continue today, with the global south typically polluting less – and yet it is the south that most feels the impacts of extreme weather events, and it is the
south that deals with the world’s waste and the local impacts of deforestation by multi-nationals. It is therefore important that poorer countries are not excluded from sustainable development opportunities. Global justice in carbon emissions, achieved via both the contraction and convergence of all carbon outputs, is integral to a just transition. Closer to home, as Windrush, Grenfell, the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on people of colour and the targeting of black youth by stop and search show, one doesn’t have to look far for examples of systemic racism. Liverpool and Merseyside’s economic past is rooted in the slave trade, and that has consequences for present action. The numbers forced to migrate because of climate systems breakdown is unclear, but some estimates predict that 19% of the world could become uninhabitable by 20703 suggesting that up to a billion people could be forced out of their homes by 20504. With the creation of so many climate refugees, they should be granted a special status by the UN.
Proposals for Merseyside • Positive impacts can be made via purchase and procurement decisions, in how investment and purchases are made, and through the development of climate jobs and services • All climate policies – from apprenticeships to housing developments to transport strategy – should have equality impact assessments • Climate justice work should prioritise local, community-led initiatives. At home and abroad, large organisations too often get significant sums for salary and infrastructure costs, with just a small amount going to those doing the practical work on the ground 21
Learning
Carbon literacy is the measure of
how we understand the climate crisis and the move towards a low / zero carbon economy. It is not just a technical or scientific matter, rooted in facts and figures but instead should be understood as part of a creative education practice that covers a wide range of (in)formal learning areas – citizenship, equality and democracy; nature and our place within it; species survival, biodiversity and sustainability; cohabitation and our relationships with others in our communities. It is an interdisciplinary project for every age level, taking place
Photo: Erik McGregor1
everywhere from play groups and schools to homes and workplaces to further education and community activism. Access to effective learning is not just a matter of the what, but is also about the how and the where. Too often, factors around class, race and gender determine the quality of the education that can be accessed. Meaningful and useful learning takes place in an environment that is stimulating, challenging, rewarding and empowering, and one that is designed to develop a broad range of skills. When appropriately resourced, research, 22
programmes for members and the wider community. Just as campaigns that have grown out of Black Lives Matter have highlighted how curriculums need revising to include more complete histories and information, so have some pointed to the lack of substantive attention paid to climate breakdown within formal education.2 These connected suppressions and denials must be acknowledged, challenged and repaired.
analytical and creative skills can be presented as a package of interesting and varied lessons, not a list of educational achievements to attain. The over-emphasis on testing and assessment must stop. In the public meeting, it was felt that there is not enough understanding of the urgency of the climate crisis we are facing here and around the world and that education is vital in addressing this. There was discussion of how museums and galleries in Liverpool are reaching out to schools and the wider community with creative activities that look at species extinction and how it can be prevented. This is important work that needs to be developed further. Student groups and some NUS branches are doing good work in universities, but it was generally felt that in workplaces and amongst the broader public there is a lack of awareness about the possibilities of tactics such as pension divestment and the importance of green skills and climate apprenticeships. The Labour Party and trade unions need to address this, whilst CLPs could be supported with learning
Proposals for Merseyside • Parents and school governors can push for the Eco School programme to be adopted3 • Provide incentives for post-16 providers to offer Green New Deal related opportunities • Trades Unions to push for both initial and in-service training in green skills • Appoint a CLP Environment Officer to each CLP • Reframe the Green New Deal as something young people can aspire to • Link up with Socialist Societies such as SERA4 and the SEA5 23
Waste
The Waste Hierarchy1
The way in which we produce
material, building products to last longer and using less hazardous materials. Plastic is having a devastating effect on the environment and single-use plastic accounts for 40 percent of plastic produced each year.2 We should therefore ban single-use plastics wherever possible and tax their use where not. A “producer pays� law, similar to that in Germany, would make manufacturers responsible for the redesign, reuse, recycling, composting and disposal of their products. The next stage focuses on keeping products in use for as long as
goods and services is a major contributor to the climate crisis. Alongside key factors such as the mining of raw materials and the emission of greenhouse gases during manufacture and transport, changing the way in which we deal with waste can significantly reduce damaging effects. As the Waste Hierarchy shows, the top priority is to reduce waste during manufacture, and only when something can’t be repaired or re-used should it be recycled. Prevention means using less 24
possible. Legislation should tackle the built-in obsolescence that means products are intentionally produced with shorter lifespans and introduce a “Right to repair”. Repair shops and the work done by groups such as The Restart Project3 can be supported by local authorities with electronics recycling centres and by having a free Electrical and Electronics disposal service. This will support local shops with materials for the repair of electronic devices and drive down the costs of disposal Proposals for Merseyside • Ban / introduce incentives for reducing the use of single use plastics at council events • Be creative! Design municipally branded eco-friendly takeaway packaging • Support the local economy with eco-incentives to those businesses doing the right thing • Waste contracts should be short enough to ensure that boroughs can profit from improving waste to energy technologies • Support community growing projects, repair cafes6 and re-use projects like a Library of Things7
at recycling centres. As well as repairing items, local authorities should support communities with rental or co-ownership facilities for items, such as DIY tools, that are made available to people at a low price when needed. Once goods can no longer be used the next priority is recycling. Councils should push Defra for additional funding to create resources and forums for the sharing of best practices around recycling and waste management. After this point, other forms of recovery can be used for energy generation. For example, an investigation of kerbside waste in the Merseyside and Halton area, found that between 132,000 and 162,000 tonnes of food waste is thrown into household bins.4 This equates to approximately 51,000 tonnes of food waste in Liverpool alone. A waste to energy system has the potential to convert 51,000 tonnes of food waste into 6.120 MWh of electricity per day (enough to power around 4000 homes).5 Research should be done into the viability of this solution. The final stage is landfill, which should no longer be considered a viable option. 25
Democracy
Our “Building a Zero-Carbon Manifesto for Merseyside” event held at The Brink, Liverpool
Democratic ownership is an
integral element of the Green New Deal – just as economic power and democracy are fundamentally linked, so must citizens and workers be central to the green transformation.
(the Mersey Tidal Barrage) as well as smaller, more local investments (domestic PV arrays and electric car sharing schemes) a range of ownership models need consideration.
... to be adopted widely, it has to ring true with the wider public, whose intelligence must never be underestimated.3 New research emphasises both the public support1 and economic benefits2 of nationalising key utilities. Since a Green New Deal involves both large scale projects
Ann Pettifor There was some discussion at the public meeting about who are “grassroots decision-makers”; are they individual residents / workers or their elected representatives? 26
opportunities in which the power to make key decisions is shared. On Merseyside, institutions such as the city region’s Fairness and Social Justice Advisory Board offer a framework for amplifying stakeholders’ voices; their powers and modes of engagement just need further development. Projects such as Homebaked and Granby 4 Streets, two renowned housing projects in Liverpool, both prioritise energy efficiency and demonstrate the power of empowered communities. Municipal support for similar projects would be welcomed. This could be provided by schemes such as Crowdfund Liverpool and Liverpool, Preston and Wirral councils’ regional bank. Whilst not a replacement for central government money, these nevertheless offer innovative funding alternatives. To introduce sustained behavioural change at the necessary rate and scale, inviting communities to develop strategies is likely to be more effective than simply imposing rules from above. Genuine democratic engagement also grants a political mandate for what might otherwise be unpopular decisions.
At Merseyside Labour for a Green New Deal, our position is that whilst it may not always be practical to involve individuals in every decision, we need institutions that operate locally, municipally and nationally / internationally where there are systems in place that, at a fundamental level, enable genuine citizen, worker and other stakeholder control. The role for politicians in such processes is to be enabling and supportive, to work with communities and unions to facilitate education and informed dialogue, and to provide Engaging stakeholders • Meet stakeholders where they are – engagement is about reaching out, not sitting back • Adopt a variety of engagement strategies, including digital – remember that no single method reaches everyone • Citizen information / education programmes for all ages • The autonomy to both instigate and veto action is vital • Remember that, at first, most probably won’t be interested 27
Next Steps • Join us! We want to have active LGND teams in every CLP in Merseyside, so get in touch and get involved • Write to your local councillors and MP about key policies from this document • Pass our motion at your CLP • Create a role for a Climate Emergency Officer in your CLP and trade union • Get in touch - find us on Twitter and Facebook @MerseyLGND or e-mail merseylgnd@outlook.com Merseyside Labour for a green New deal 28
Download more copies of the manifesto from: www.tinyurl.com/MLGND2021
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Motion for a Green New Deal on Merseyside Send this motion to your Constituency Labour Party (CLP) secretary for debate in a future meeting. This CLP notes that: - Humanity is facing a breakdown of climate and ecological systems on an unprecedented scale. The impacts of this reach across the globe and will inevitably transform the way that each of us lives our lives - In order to mitigate the impacts of this climate crisis, urgent action must be taken across a broad range of areas – in the workplace, across our communities and in the home - [Insert council name] declared Climate Emergency on [insert date] and Liverpool City Region has set a target to reach net zero by 2040 - As demonstrated by the 2019 Labour Manifesto’s Green Industrial Revolution, a just transition to a sustainable future is popular and holds the potential for addressing many of the issues around work, health, social care and poverty that blight our communities in the wake of austerity and the COVID-19 pandemic - With the devastating losses of the 2019 election, there is increased pressure and responsibility on the sites, regionally and locally, where Labour does hold power to push for a radical and just transition to a sustainable and socialist future - Merseyside Labour for a Green New Deal (MLGND) have, with people from across Merseyside, collectively developed a Local Manifesto to highlight strategies and measures that can be adopted locally to these ends 30
This CLP resolves to: - Encourage the development of a culture which prioritises climate justice and action / education around key climate and ecological issues - Write to the Metro Mayor, the LCF and Labour Group to promote the Zero-Carbon Manifesto for Merseyside and press home the CLP’s support for urgent action - Promote MLGND’s Manifesto to councillors, CLP members and other relevant parties - Regularly invite speakers from local government and environmental groups to future CLP meetings as part of a climate crisis political education programme - Support local groups and campaigns (e.g. the Youth Strike for Climate and Save Rimrose Valley campaigns) through public demonstrations of solidarity - Create the role of a CLP Climate Emergency Officer to facilitate and promote the above resolutions
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References Further Reading • • • • • • •
Akala (2019) Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire Boughton, John (2019) Municipal Dreams: The Rise and Fall of Council Housing Meeks, James (2014) Private Island. Why Britain Now Belongs to Someone Else Niven, Alex (2019) New Model Island Standing, Guy (2019) Plunder of the Commons: A Manifesto for Sharing Public Wealth Varoufakis, Yanis (2017) Talking to My Daughter About the Economy Wallace-Wells, David (2019) The Uninhabitable Earth: A Story of the Future
Housing and the Built Environment 1 Waite, Christopher (2020) 2018 UK Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Final figures. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/ file/862887/2018_Final_greenhouse_gas_emissions_statistical_release.pdf 2 Labour Party (2019) Warm Homes for All – Labour’s plan to reduce energy bills, create jobs and tackle the climate emergency. Available at: https://labour.org.uk/press/warm-homes-for-alllabours-plan-to-reduce-energy-bills-create-jobs-and-tackle-the-climate-emergency 3 Johnson, James (2017) Liverpool City Region & Local Energy. Available at: https://www. sustainabilitywestmidlands.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/6_JJ-LCR.pdf 4 Friends of the Earth. nd. How climate friendly is your community? Available at: https:// friendsoftheearth.uk/climate-friendly-communities 5 Labour Party (2019) Warm Homes for All. Available as above. 6 Killip, Gavin (2008) Transforming the UK’s Existing Housing Stock. Available at: https://d7.ciob. org/sites/default/files/FMB%20Building%20A%20Greener%20Britain.pdf 7 The Institue of Engineering and Technology (2018) Scaling upretrofit 2050. Available at: https://www.theiet.org/media/5276/retrofit.pdf
Energy 1 Friends of the Earth (2020) How climate friendly is your area? Available at: https:// takeclimateaction.uk/climate-action/how-climate-friendly-your-area 2 Dingwall, Davic (2020) The downfall of Robin Hood Energy. Available at: https://www. redpepper.org.uk/the-downfall-of-robin-hood-energy/ 3 Community Reinvest (2014) Divest – Reinvest: a tool for social change. Available at: https:// communityreinvest.org.uk 4 Abundance Investment (2020) Mobilise your money for good. Available at: https://www. abundanceinvestment.com 5 Liverpool Express (2020) Liverpool community bank approved by FCA. Available at: https:// liverpoolexpress.co.uk/liverpool-community-bank-approved-by-fca
Green Space: Land Use and Communities 1 Rimrose Valley Friends on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rimrosevalleyfriends/ 2 Save Oglet Shore & Greenbelt on Faceboook: https://www.facebook.com/ groups/156942905129564/about/ 3 Who Owns England? website: https://whoownsengland.org 32
Transport 1 Friends of the Earth (2020) How climate friendly is your area? Available at: https:// takeclimateaction.uk/climate-action/how-climate-friendly-your-area 2 Merseyside Cycling Campaign (2020) Pedal Press. Available at: https://www.merseycycle.org. uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Pedal-Press-Winter2020-online.pdf 3 Traynor, Luke (2020) 1,000 deaths a year linked to air pollution in Liverpool City Region, shock new report claims. Available at: https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/1000deaths-year-linked-air-17623833 4 Department of Transport (2020) Gear Change: A bold vision for cycling and walking. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_ data/file/904146/gear-change-a-bold-vision-for-cycling-and-walking.pdf 5 Boardman, Chris (2017) Made to Move. Available at: https://assets.ctfassets.net/ nv7y93idf4jq/1XtfykQs0g22g8cYCyoAag/dee5732015f23c5df3a338afc2353b74/Made_to_ Move.pdf 5 Transport for Greater Manchester (2018) Bee Network. Available at: https://assets.ctfassets. net/pa0g0kendylq/4arLoMhnSw64GIHkkSMJQk/9bb6717ecaff87a72ff87a9bc8da24aa/Bee_ Network_proposal_FINAL.pdf 6 Sustrans (2019) Bike Life Liverpool City Region. Available at: https://www.sustrans.org.uk/bikelife/bike-life-liverpool-city-region/?fbclid=IwAR1HlMKOEkFy5W8tR1wmKrl3NTDReryTnrVzb2rJlT 3f6ODdOApWe-SiciA 7 Vision Zero Network (2020) What is Vision Zero? Available at: https://visionzeronetwork.org/ about/what-is-vision-zero 8 Global Street Designing Cities Initiative (2020) Global Street Design Guide. Available at: https://globaldesigningcities.org/publication/global-street-design-guide/
Health 1 Borunda, Alejandra (2019) The last five years were the hottest ever, NASA and NOAA declare. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/2019/02/last-five-years-were-hottest-evernasa-and-noaa-declare 2 Osborne, Samuel (2020) Summer heatwaves killed 900 people across UK, official data indicates. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/summerheatwaves-uk-deaths-weather-climate-change-phe-a9273546.html 3 World Health Organisation (2018) Climate change and health. Available at: https://www.who. int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-and-health 4 Traynor, Luke (2020) 1,000 deaths a year linked to air pollution in Liverpool City Region, shock new report claims. Available at: https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/1000deaths-year-linked-air-17623833 5 MatĂŠ, Gabor (2015) How to Build a Better Culture of Good Health. Available at: https:// drgabormate.com/culture-good-health
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Race and Climate Justice 1 Halton, Mary (2018) Climate change ‘impacts women more than men’. Available at: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-43294221 2 At the meeting it was noted that although the global north & global south are terms often adopted by progressives, their meaning is complex and sometimes misleading. 3 Lustgarten, Abrahn (2020) The Great Climate Migration. Available at: https://www.nytimes. com/interactive/2020/07/23/magazine/climate-migration.html 4 International Organisation for Migration (2008) Migration and Climate Change. Available at: https://publications.iom.int/books/mrs-ndeg31-migration-and-climate-change
Learning 1 Used under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0): https://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-sa/2.0/ 2 Lewis, Izzy (2019) Put climate change lessons in schools! Available at: https://www.change. org/p/get-the-climate-crisis-on-the-national-curriculum 3 Keep Britain Tidy (nd.) Giving children & teenagers an environmental voice. Available at: https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/about 4 SERA – the Labour Environment Campaign website: https://www.sera.org.uk 5 SEA (Socialist Education Association) website: https://socialisteducationalassociation.org
Waste 1 DEFRA (2011) Guidance on applying the Waste Hierarchy. Available at: https://assets. publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/69403/ pb13530-waste-hierarchy-guidance.pdf 2 Parker, Laura (2018) We Made Plastic. We Depend on It. Now We’re Drowning in It. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/06/plastic-planet-waste-pollutiontrash-crisis/ 3 The Restart Project website: https://therestartproject.org 4 Quested, Tom and Parry, Andrew (2017) Household Food Waste in the UK, 2015. Available at: http://www.wrap.org.uk/content/household-food-waste-uk-2015-0 5 Amec Foster Wheeeler (2016) Merseyside and Halton Waste Composition Study 2015/16 Available at: https://www.merseysidewda.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Merseysideand-Halton-Waste-Partnership-Final-Report-16173i4.pdf 6 What is a Repair Café? Available at: https://repaircafe.org/en/about/ 7 Library of Things: The Why? Available at: https://www.libraryofthings.co.uk/why
Democracy 1 Hall, David (2019) Nationalisation would save UK billions, Greenwich research reveals. Available at: https://www.gre.ac.uk/articles/public-relations/nationalisation-would-save-ukbillions-greenwich-research-reveals 2 YouGov (2017) Nationalisation vs privatisation: the public view. Available at: https://yougov. co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2017/05/19/nationalisation-vs-privatisation-public-view 3 Pettifor, Ann (2019) The Case for the Green New Deal. London: Verso
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This manifesto draws on the work, thoughts and advice of too many to name in their entirety. Special thanks however go to the design team at Labour for a Green New Deal for graphics and logos, and all those who made contributions at the public meeting. Cover image: Toby Forster @tobyforster88
@MerseyLGND @MerseyLGND merseylgnd@outlook.com