Fossil fuels

Vicki Lesley, WDM south-west London group, writes from Copenhagen

After an enjoyably civilised rail journey – including an overnight stopover in Cologne, and the unusual experience of the train actually driving on to the ferry for the short sea crossing – we arrived safely in Copenhagen on Friday evening. Despite the chill in the air – Copenhagen in December is definitely as cold as you’d expect! - it was a great feeling to finally be here, in spitting distance of the negotiations, after all those months of vigorous campaigning and anticipation back home.

Whilst hopes of a sufficiently robust and legally-binding agreement now seem somewhat forlorn, there is still everything to play for and as a climate change campaigner, there is simply nowhere else to be this week. WDM is certainly well represented here – along with the Southwest London group, there are also members from North London, Oxford, Bexhill and the South Lakes groups, as well of course as Tim, Kirsty, Kate and Deborah from the office. I’m proud to be here with so many other like-minded campaigners, many of whom I’ve met for the first time in Copenhagen.

Saturday morning dawned...

Tim Jones

In Trinidad on Friday Gordon Brown got some headline coverage for his latest announcement of billions of dollars for developing countries to tackle climate change.

The prime minister became as expert as a derivatives trader in repackaging, reselling and reannouncing money when he was chancellor. Unfortunately the latest ‘news’ was no exception.

Mr Brown said rich countries should be creating a ‘Copenhagen launch fund’ worth $10 billion (£6 billion) to help developing countries adapt to climate change and develop in a low carbon way from 2010 to 2012. Let’s not get hung up on that amount as he wasn’t actually saying the UK would write a cheque.

What Gordon Brown did say was that “the UK Government would contribute £800 million in total over three years, which has already been budgeted for”. In fact it was budgeted for in the budget in 2007. The prime minister should know; he was chancellor at the time.

The same £800 million has been reannounced so many times since it’s enough to make you dizzy.

The money cannot go into a ‘Copenhagen launch fund’, because all of it has already been pledged to the World Bank. Some cheques have already been sent, and the final ones are due in April.

The use of the World Bank for climate...

Welcome to the December issue of Think Global.  This month we give you updates on our campaign plans for 2010; alongside the latest developments on new coal, more on our climate debt campaign, and information about what's going on in the world of European trade. 

Over the next month, WDM staff will be travelling both to Geneva to stand in solidarity with those protesting against the WTO, and to Copenhagen to demand a just deal for the world's poorest people at the crucial climate talks.  Keep an eye on our website for up to the minute blogs from both these conventions. 

We've had a twitter equivalent of STOP PRESS - apparently Ed Miliband definitely doesn't think it's serious to say 'UK's credibility at Copehnahgen will be shattered by his new coal plant plans. 

Ed Miliband is of course at pains to say that we have the world's most environmentally stringent policy, so of course our credibility at Copenhagen will remain intact, pretty much what ever we do. But we, and many others, disagree strongly with that. We have got climate legislation, yes, but unfortunately within the Climate Act, there are loopholes the size of several coal power stations. And that's where our credibility will fall.

The government’s own committee on climate change has said: “there can be no role for conventional coal generation in the UK beyond the early 2020s”. But Ed Miliband’s statement yesterday allows hundreds of megawatts of new conventional coal to be built, and does nothing to ensure old conventional coal plants shut down in the early 2020s.

In our view, and the view of campaigners across the globe, it's just not serious enough to say we've got a tough climate law but we're...

In response to Ed Miliband's energy statement to parliament today, the World Development Movement reacted with disappointment and argued that the UK's credibility at Copenhagen has been 'shattered'.

Deborah Doane, director of the World Development Movement said:
"Ed Miliband today has shattered the UK's credibility at the Copenhagen summit by going ahead with disastrous plans for new coal. His decision to allow two new dirty coal power stations to be built will see increasing emissions long into the future. He has acknowledged that carbon capture technology may not work, but nonetheless hasn't introduced a safety net to protect the climate if this unproven technology fails.

"Furthermore, he's done nothing to shut down old coal plants which can continue to pollute for decades to come. This policy flies in the face of recommendations from the government's own climate advisors.

"This will continue to increase our climate debt to the world's poorest people. And in turn, this will lock in greater inequality and injustice faced by people, like those in the Philippines or El Salvador who are currently suffering from climate-change related weather disasters, such as flooding and typhoons."

This December 7-18 negotiations will take place in Copenhagen in an attempt to reach an international agreement to tackle climate change.

The World Development Movement, along with social movements and governments from the global south, has been calling for the UK and the rest of the rich world to repay its ‘climate debt’ at Copenhagen – the money the rich world owes to the world’s poorest people for causing climate change.

The World Development Movement will be in Copenhagen for the duration of the summit keeping an eye on the negotiations and taking part in events outside the conference centre. We’ll be blogging on this website to keep you updated.

On the 5th December we’ll also be at The Wave in London and Glasgow where tens of thousands of people will demonstrate their support for a safe climate future for all.

Repaying our climate debt at Copenhagen

The UK has grown rich on the back of burning fossil fuels, which has driven us to the point of climate catastrophe. The global south should not have to pay the price of a crisis it didn’t create.

However, rather than...

WDM campaigned on the rights of workers in toy factories between 1995 and 1996 and in 1998.

Background

Three out of every four toys bought in the UK have been made in Asia.  China alone produces over a third of the world’s toys.  Much of this work is subcontracted by the big toy companies to Asian factories.  Research undertaken in China by the Hong Kong Coalition for the Charter on the Safe Production of Toys revealed that workers are not being adequately protected and their health and safety continue to be undermined by long hours, low pay and at times perilous working conditions.

Campaign

Following major fires and deaths in toy factories in Thailand and China, WDM representatives visited Thailand to see factories and meet workers.  This led to the launch of a UK campaign in partnership with Asia Monitor Resource Centre in Hong Kong, Catholic Institute for International Relations (CIIR) and the TUC, to press for a code of conduct on the production of toys.

In January 1996, the British Toy and Hobbies Association (BTHA) agreed their own health and safety code.  This closely matched the code promoted by WDM and the Asian campaigners, except there was no recognition of trade union negotiating rights...

A High Court judge today blocked a request for permission to hold a Judicial Review over what campaigners say is the Treasury’s lack of adequate environmental and human rights consideration of Royal Bank of Scotland’s investments.

Campaigners from the World Development Movement, PLATFORM and People & Planet, who brought the case against the Treasury expressed ‘disappointment’ at the ruling and have decided to appeal this decision.

Deborah Doane, the director of the World Development Movement said,

“We're incredibly disappointed with the court's decision not to allow to a full hearing on this important case and will be appealing the judgement. Essentially, the judgement means that RBS' profits come before the climate and human rights of people.This is particularly hard to swallow after Gordon Brown's soaring rhetoric on climate change yesterday. We're incredibly angry to see that just one day later the Treasury outrageously argued that for a director of business to take environmental concerns into account would be a 'burden' and 'handicapping'. Yet, this is precisely the kind of positive action that the government should be promotoing, if we are to believe one word of Gordon Brown's speech yesterday.

The lawyers acting on behalf of the groups...

Tim Jones

Funny old week. You stoically campaign on an issue of life and death for a year, and just when you wonder if anyone really takes the injustice of climate change seriously, three campaign successes come along in the space of a few days.

On Wednesday night I was in Medway at a local meeting against Kingsnorth power station. It was only towards the end of the evening we realised we should have spent the evening down the pub when word came through that E.On have put Kingsnorth on hold. After two years of fantastic campaigning, it was amazing to learn the news while standing alongside the inspiring local campaigners who live within sight of the coal megalith. Campaigners 1, carbon polluters 0.

Our WDM friends in Scotland obviously felt a bit grumpy by our cheeriness south of the border. Yes Kingsnorth was the one application for a new coal power station in the UK. But Danish company Dong have been working hard on an application for a typhoon-strengthening, drought-causing coal burner at Hunterston in Ayshire. Not anymore. Today Dong withdrew their investment, probably pulling the plug on the whole project.

With coal power stations falling quicker than a premiership striker, you might have missed the news story on Heathrow. BAA are reportedly not...

Scottish campaigners greeted with delight the news that Danish energy giant Dong Energy has dropped plans to develop new coal fired power stations at Hunterston in Ayrshire, and also in Germany.

The case for new coal fired power stations in Scotland is crumbling after the developer pulled out, citing financial difficulties and a strategic change of direction towards lower carbon investments.

Following Dong’s announcement that it would prioritise investments in renewables, and last week’s news that Eon energy had postponed plans for a coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth in Kent, Liz Murray, Head of Scottish Campaigns at World Development Movement commented:

“It’s clearer than ever that dirty coal is a risky investment. Energy companies are finding it impossible to justify such climate-trashing developments. Banks that continue to invest heavily in coal – such as Scotland’s RBS – should also beware the writing on the wall, and switch their investments to support renewable energy instead.”

Friends of the Earth Scotland’s Chief Executive Duncan McLaren added:

“We are delighted that Dong has withdrawn. But dirty coal is more than a bad investment, it’s also bad policy. The Scottish Government must...

Late last night, EON confirmed that they had shelved plans for the controversial Kingsnorth coal plant in Kent. The news of the victory spread like wild fire, and the 'Stop Kingsnorth' campaigners received it via text at a coal debate in Rochester, hosted jointly by the World Development Movement and the local campaigning group, KingsnorthClimate Action Medway, who have been working closely for nearly two years.

The official line from E.ON was that the delay is as a result of the recession. But we have been arguing all along that we just don't need new coal power stations in the UK. The recession excuse aside, meeting renewable energy and energy efficiency targets must mean that the 'the lights will go off' rhetoric from E.ON and the government has always been nothing more than a public relations exercise to sell coal power to the public.

We have been campaigning to Stop Kingsnorth because the new power station would have emitted more CO2 than Tanzania, and could have caused 20,000 people to become homeless and meant that 100, 000 more people lost their dry water season supply...

Tim Jones

The Philippines is once again suffering from the impacts of a typhoon. Capital City Manila had the highest rainfall in its history on Saturday as Typhoon Ondoy swept across Luzon Island.

At least 140 people are reported to have died due to flooding so far, with tens of thousands losing their homes. Nathaniel Cruz from the Philippine weather agency said: “This could again be a manifestation of climate change. Due to climate change, we should expect more extreme weather events like extreme rainfall."

Last summer I visited Manila and a province on the eastern coast of Luzon called Albay. Tropical storms are part of life in the Philippines, but scientists have shown that storms and typhoons have already got stronger due to climate change. In Manila I saw the remnants of Typhoon Frank, which overturned a ferry killing 800 people.

Albay is often the worst affected region of the Philippines, lying directly in the path of typhoons coming from the east. When I visited last year, people were still trying to rebuild their homes and lives after Typhoon Reming devastated the region in 2006, killing over 1,000 people.

We are always told no single disaster can be said to be caused by climate change. But that’s not how the people I met in Albay look at...

 The World Development Movement was shocked and saddened to hear that Professor Anu Muhammad was one of a number of protestors injured by police during a recent peaceful demonstration in Bangladesh.

Professor Muhammed, who is Secretary of the National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, was protesting against the decision by the Bangladesh government to grant offshore oil and gas exploration deals in the Bay of Bengal for two international companies, ConocoPhillips and Tullow Oil plc.

Professor Muhammed has long been an opponent of the Phulbari open cast mine in Bangladesh, proposed by UK company Global Coal Management Resources, which would force more than 50,000 people off the land and threaten the water supplies of a further 100,000. Until a recent turnaround, the UK government publicly supported the proposed mine.

The World Development Movement worked closely with Professor Anu Muhammad on the Phulbari campaign and hosted his visit to the UK in December 2008, when he met with MPs, NGOs and the Bangladeshi community to raise...

Campaigners from RSPB, the World Development Movement, Christian Aid, Oxfam, WWF and Greenpeace will hold a 'coal kills' vigil today outside the Department for Energy and Climate Change on Whitehall.

At 16.30, the organisations' CEOs and campaigners will hold up images of glaciers, polar bears, birds, food and water supplies of the millions of people in the developing world who will lose their lives and livelihoods and a stark message of 'coal kills'. These will represent what the campaigners believe that Climate Minister, Ed Miliband will save if he makes the right decision - to rule out new coal.

The charities are coming together to remind Ed Miliband that he must go further on his policy proposals on coal and provide a cast-iron guarantee that no new dirty coal-fired power stations will be built in the UK unless all of the carbon emissions are captured from the start.

The CEOs will invite Ed Miliband to meet with the groups to hand him personally a statement detailing the thousands of powerful pledges and statements that each organisation has collected from supporters. These include letters from young RSPB members asking Miliband to do more, photos from Christian Aid supporters asking him to reconsider, and promises of thousands of Greenpeace and World...

This year’s Camp for Climate Action pitched up their tents on Blackheath in London yesterday. There are around 1,000 people there already, with more expected as the weekend gets closer. Along with the workshops and demonstrations of sustainable living, there will also be non-violent direct action during the week, and some climate campers have kicked this off already with an action-cum-street theatre outside the Climate Exchange on Bishopsgate.

One of the key reasons for bringing the Climate Camp to London this year is to challenge the role of the City in creating the climate crisis. The fact that our society is geared towards endless economic growth has resulted in a headlong rush towards global warming. WDM has long argued that redistribution to tackle inequality is the key to ending poverty, rather than unsustainable growth which threatens the planet and fails to ‘lift up the poor’.

Moreover, the obsession with the free market, which has dominated official global politics for the last 30 years, means that politicians are looking to a ‘market mechanism’, carbon...

The World Development Movement is part of the Climate Justice Now! network, which is a southern-led coalition of around 150 organisations and movements campaigning for a globally just and effective solution to the climate crisis.

Climate Justice Now! principles

Communities in the global south as well as low-income communities in the industrialised north have borne the toxic burden of this fossil fuel extraction, transportation and production. Now these communities are facing the worst impacts of climate change - from food shortages to the inundation of whole island nations.

Inside the global climate negotiations, rich industrialised countries have put unjustifiable pressure on southern governments to commit to emissions reductions. At the same time, they have refused to live up to their own legal and moral obligations to radically cut emissions and support developing countries' efforts to reduce emissions and adapt to climate impacts.

Climate Justice Now! will work to expose the false solutions to the climate crisis promoted by these...

The World Development Movement welcomes progress made on renewable targets but fears that the reliance on carbon trading to reduce emissions is a 'dangerous get-out-of-jail-free card'.

Deborah Doane, director of the World Development Movement said:
"The commitment to generate 30 per cent of electricity from renewable sources and to reduce emissions in the UK power sector is welcome. But the politics is still lagging behind the science as this target doesn't come close enough to what is needed to prevent dangerous climate change.

"Worryingly the government has said it can use carbon offsetting to meet targets if we fail to cut emissions. This is a dangerous get-out-of-jail-free card which could be disastrous for the climate and for the world's poorest people. The government has to be completely committed to reducing our emissions here in the UK, not pass the buck onto developing countries.

"Ed Miliband's own department has previously acknowledged that we don't need new coal power stations to keep the lights on. So it's contradictory to see his continued claims that we need to build new coal power stations."

ENDS

For more information, please all Kate Blagojevic on 020 7820 4900 / 07711 875 345

Notes to editors
The...

New stats showing Kingsnorth's impact on water, food, refugees, drought and death

A new Kingsnorth coal plant could be responsible for 100,000 more people in the developing world losing their water supply in dry seasons reveals the World Development Movement today.

The anti-poverty campaigners have released a catalogue of shocking new statistics that show the devastating human impact that carbon emissions from a new Kingsnorth plant alone could have on people in the developing world because of its contribution to climate change. The World Development Movement reveals:

• 100,000 more people losing their dry season water supply
• Up to 300 more people dying every year due to malnutrition
• Up to 60,000 more people suffering from drought in Africa
• 50,000 more people going hungry due to drought and lower crop yields
• Up to 40,000 more people exposed to malaria
• 20,000 people being forced our of their homes and becoming climate refugees
• Around 30,000 more people losing their homes every year due to coastal flooding

Deborah Doane, director of the World Development Movement said:

These figures reveal, for the first time, the devastating human impact of building a new Kingsnorth coal power...

The government has been roundly criticised from various quarters for the use of public cash to bail out and prop up RBS. Scandals over Sir Fred's pension and now the ten million pound salary and bonus package for the new RBS boss have been grabbing headlines and stoking public outrage. And rightly so. Now the World Development Movement, along with PLATFORM and People and Planet, have dealt a further blow to the government's hands off approach to how it manages the billions of pounds of taxpayers' money poured into the self-styled 'oil and gas' bank. We launched a legal action today to challenge the Treasury's disastrous decision to finance RBS but ignore the government's own environment and human rights criteria to check that taxpayers' money is not spent in a harmful way.

Before launching the judicial review of this decision, Platform wrote to the Treasury to ask why they decided to ignore the fact that public money was being spent to fund a bank that is known for financing high carbon projects, several of which have also been linked to serious human rights concerns. The answer came back that 'environmental and human rights records of individual banks were of no relevance'. The excuse was that taking these considerations into account wouldn't be in the public interest...

The World Development Movement strongly criticises the government's 'Road to Copenhagen' as 'riddled with pot holes.'

Tim Jones, climate policy officer at the World Development Movement said:

"Unfortunately, the 'Road to Copenhagen' is riddled with pot holes and Gordon Brown and Ed Miliband are posturing as the international saviours of the planet. The reality is that the climate science that the document is based on is out-of-date; the plans for a new Kingsnorth power station will smash our carbon reduction targets; and claiming that the global carbon market will deliver both reductions of our emissions, as well as financial assistance to developing countries to reduce their emissions is simply double counting on an Enronesque scale.

"If the government genuinely wishes to achieve a global climate deal that will help to prevent dangerous climate change, they must lead and not posture. The first thing that Gordon Brown and Ed Miliband should do if they are serious about preventing catastrophic climate change is to abandon plans for new dirty coal power stations in the UK.

"The global carbon market is not the solution. It means that the government can claim that we are reducing our carbon emissions whilst burning fossil fuels as normal....

Thousands of people who care about climate change and global poverty, including celebs, bird watchers, cake lovers, grannies and young people from across the UK will form a 'Mili-band' – a human chain around Kingsnorth coal power station - on the 4 July to say no to dirty new coal power stations.

The Women's Institute, Christian Aid, RSPB, the youth organisation – the Woodcraft Folk, Oxfam and the World Development Movement are jointly organising the fun-filled, family and future-friendly event to highlight the human cost of dirty coal and the effect that climate change will have on millions of people in poor countries. After forming the human chain, the celebrity speakers, musicians and games at the Sturdee Social and Sports Centre will provide fun for all the family. 

The name of the event is inspired by Ed Miliband, the minister for climate change, who will make the decision about whether to give the Kingsnorth plant the green light.

Kirsty Wright, from the World Development Movement said:

"This day is about having fun but is also about sending an important message to Ed Miliband. He needs to rule out new coal power in the UK unless all the climate-wrecking carbon emissions are captured from the start. He's made good progress...

The headlines over the last few weeks have been dominated by revelations over the expenses claimed by MPs.

So to coincide with the publication of our 2008 annual review WDM have calculated what we could spend those expense claims on:

£18,000 for bookcases – would fund a campaigner’s salary for a years worth of work on our anti-poverty, fair trade or climate change campaigns.

£2,000 for ‘moat cleaning services’ – would fund a report similar to the one that we used to persuade the Norwegian government to stop pushing controversial water privatisation in poor countries.

£1,851 for a rug – would be enough for props, placards, banners and costumes that would help us get our campaigns noticed and make headline news (like we did in 2005 with Make Poverty History and again in 2009 at the G20)

£1,645 spent on a ‘duck island’ – would fund all our web hosting costs for a year, including email actions like the one that helped stop a devastating coal mine from being built in Bangladesh.

£730 for a massage chair - would fund for a visiting speaker like Mary Lou to come and talk to local groups and activists.

£105.75 for an engineer - to attend to...

The World Development Movement welcomed Ed Miliband’s announcement that there is no place for unabated coal in our energy future at a time of climate crisis. However, the campaign group warned that the proposal leaves a giant loop hole that could still lead to disastrous levels of emissions before 2025. The proposed new plant at Kingsnorth in Kent could alone emit as much as the whole of Ghana each year.

“I’m delighted that the Minister has finally recognised there is no place for unabated coal at this time of climate crisis.” said Benedict Southworth, WDM’s Director.

But the Government is committing billions of pounds of taxpayers money on a technology [CCS] that remains untested on a large scale and may never be economically viable. It is also yet to be proven that climate damaging carbon dioxide emissions can be stored safely underground.”

“It is critical that the UK government provides a guarantee that if the gamble fails we won’t be left with massively polluting plants.”

Power companies must now recognise that new coal fired power stations cannot go ahead without being full CCS from the start, otherwise there will be no guarantee they will be cost effective by 2025.

ENDS

To organise an interview or for more information, please contact...

This briefing includes the World Development Movement's critique and recommendations to the G20 leaders on the following areas: trade v protectionism; refuelling the IMF; resurrecting the WTO Doha development round; the climate crisis and the Green New Deal.

This is not just a banking crisis.

The banks collapsed and were bailed out. The global economic system as a whole has broken down, and must be radically revised to ensure that it puts people and the planet first.

A consequence of the capitalist casino system of international finance and consumption is the climate crisis. The economic and climate crises are intrinsically linked and should have been addressed as such by the G20 leaders.

This meeting defined the future of the global economy more than any other in the last sixty years; and as such had profound implications for the world’s poor and efforts to tackle climate change. We want an economic system that is up to the challenges of the 21st century.

Dr Julian Oram, head of policy at the World Development Movement, said:

"The G20 must not prescribe more of the same toxic medicine that led to the current...

The World Development Movement slammed a UK government plan to put almost £400 million of 'green' aid designed to assist developing countries low carbon development into a World Bank fund that will subsidise new dirty coal power plants.

The £400 million represents almost half of the UK’s Environmental Transformation Fund – Gordon Brown’s flagship £800 million fund to assist developing countries to deal with the impacts of climate change and develop low carbon economies.

Benedict Southworth, director of the World Development Movement said:

"This UK government money is supposedly specifically designed to help developing countries make the transition to low carbon economies. It's an absolute disgrace that it will actually be used for building new coal power stations. This money will actually contribute significantly to climate change, rather than do anything to prevent it. This is embarrassing for the UK government; but is incredibly worrying news for the world's poorest people who will be hit hardest by climate change. They expect the UK to play a leading role in the fight against climate change both at home and through its funding.

"Every pound of this 'green' aid that will be spent on funding coal power through the World Bank is money...

A huge new platform of unions, development agencies, faith and environmental groups plans to tell world leaders attending the G20 summit in April that only just, fair and sustainable policies can lead the world out of recession.

The alliance, which includes the TUC, Oxfam, ActionAid, Friends of the Earth and CAFOD, is calling on people to join a major demonstration for jobs, justice and climate in London on Saturday 28 March, five days before the summit.

Under the banner "Put People First – March for Jobs, Justice and Climate", the groups will demand decent jobs and public services for all, an end to global poverty and inequality, and a green economy.

The march will assemble on the Embankment en route to Hyde Park for a rally to be addressed by speakers and celebrities from the UK and around the world.

The organisations backing "Put People First" say: "Recession must not be an excuse for putting off action for global justice or to stop climate chaos. The only sustainable way to rebuild the global economy is to create a fair distribution of wealth that provides decent jobs and public services for all, ends global inequality and builds a low carbon future."

TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said:
"People are angry at the...

This morning, (10 Jan) the average person in Britain will have already produced more carbon in 2009 than a person from the poorest countries emits in a whole year warns the World Development Movement [1].

Benedict Southworth, director of the World Development Movement said:

"It is shocking that by today the average Briton will have already produced more carbon this year than someone in a poor country will in the whole of 2009. The world’s poorest people contribute little to climate change but will suffer most from its consequences."

Today also marks, the minister in charge of energy and climate change, Ed Miliband's 100th day in post. The World Development Movement challenged him to use his first 100 days to take the lead on transforming the way the UK produces its energy and responds to the threat of global warming. We outlined a five point program asking the Minister to:[2]

• Refuse E.ON’s application for a new coal power station at Kingsnorth in Kent.
• Increase the carbon reduction target in the climate bill to 80 per cent, including emissions from aviation
• Ensure that the carbon emissions reductions happen in the UK, rather than relying on carbon trading
• Set...