Yearly Archives: 2023

Greenpeace granted permission to proceed with a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision to launch a new licensing oil and gas round

Read more about the article Greenpeace granted permission to proceed with a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision to launch a new licensing oil and gas round
Greenpeace image, sign reads CHOOSE OCEANS, NOT OIL
Spread the love

The High Court yesterday granted Greenpeace permission to proceed with a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision to launch a new licensing oil and gas round, with fossil fuel companies submitting more than 100 licences to explore for new oil and gas. 

The judge has granted permission to Greenpeace for a full Judicial Review of the Government’s decision not to take into account the environmental effects of consuming the oil and gas to be extracted in the new licensing round. 

Greenpeace’s legal argument is that this is a glaring omission from the Government’s decision making, including its climate compatibility check. Since at no time do the test involve looking at the emissions created from burning fossil fuels, despite the fact that this will amount to more than 80% of the total emissions generated from the new licences.

This news comes one month after stark warnings from the IPCC and UN Secretary General which yet again restated that there must be no new fossil fuel development if the world is to limit warming to 1.5C, with current approved projects already enough to take us beyond that point. 

Philip Evans, Greenpeace UK’s climate campaigner, said:

“This verdict is the first real setback for the Government’s reckless oil and gas licensing round. Ministers will now be forced to justify in front of a judge why they want to unleash a new drilling frenzy in the North Sea against the advice of leading scientists and the UN chief, without assessing the climate impact. 

“The Government already has the solutions to tackle the scandal of the cost of living, guarantee our energy security, and help the climate but the Government is ignoring them in favour of their friends in the fossil fuel industry. They must instead upgrade our old fashioned electricity grid, invest in cheap home grown renewables and stop energy waste from our homes.”

North Sea drilling: Greenpeace prepares to challenge ‘disastrous’ UK decision

…

A court hearing on Tuesday will determine whether the environmental group will be permitted a judicial review of the decision, made during Liz Truss’s short-lived time as prime minister.

Last year, her administration kicked off an oil and gas licensing round under which companies could bid for more than 100 new licences to explore for oil and gas.

The North Sea Transition Authority began the process in October, offering up about 900 locations for exploration, and it is expected to conclude in June. It is the first new licensing round since 2019-20.

The decision was carried out by the then energy secretary, Jacob Rees-Mogg, under Truss despite warnings of possible legal action by Greenpeace. The green organisation has since carried out that threat, arguing in its court filing that the new licences will further harm the environment.

…

North Sea drilling: Greenpeace prepares to challenge ‘disastrous’ UK decision

Continue ReadingGreenpeace granted permission to proceed with a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision to launch a new licensing oil and gas round

Record ocean temperatures put Earth in ‘uncharted territory’, say scientists

Spread the love

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/apr/26/accelerating-ocean-warming-earth-temperatures-climate-crisis

‘Unprecedented’ warming indicates climate crisis is taking place before our eyes, experts say

Temperatures in the world’s oceans have broken fresh records, testing new highs for more than a month in an “unprecedented” run that has led to scientists stating the Earth has reached “uncharted territory” in the climate crisis.

…

Prof Mike Meredith of the British Antarctic Survey said: “This has got scientists scratching their heads. The fact that it is warming as much as it has been is a real surprise, and very concerning. It could be a short-lived extreme high, or it could be the start of something much more serious.”

…

Some scientists fear that the rapid warming could be a sign of the climate crisis progressing at a faster rate than predicted. The oceans have acted as a kind of global buffer to the climate crisis over recent decades, both by absorbing vast amounts of the carbon dioxide that we have poured into the atmosphere, and by storing about 90% of the excess energy and heat this has created, dampening some of the impacts of global heating on land. Some scientists fear we could be reaching the limit of the oceans’ capacity to absorb these excesses.

Meredith said it was still too soon to tell. “The rate [of temperature rise] is stronger than climate models would predict,” he said. “The cause for concern is that if it carries on, this will be well ahead of the climate curve [predicted] for the ocean. But we don’t know yet if that is going to happen.”

…

Mark Maslin, professor of Earth system science at University College London, said the climate crisis was taking hold before our eyes. “Climate scientists were shocked by the extreme weather events in 2021,” he said. “Many hoped this was just an extreme year. But they continued into 2022 and now they are occurring in 2023. It seems we have moved to a warmer climate system with frequent extreme climate events and record-breaking temperatures that are the new normal. It is difficult to see how anyone can deny climate change is happening and having devastating effects around the world.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/apr/26/accelerating-ocean-warming-earth-temperatures-climate-crisis

World Economic Forum: Ocean surface temperatures reach record high

Rich Davosers: El Niño is coming, and ocean temps are already at record highs – that can spell disaster for fish and corals

Continue ReadingRecord ocean temperatures put Earth in ‘uncharted territory’, say scientists

The Home Office says you don’t need to know about its ‘spying’ on lawyers

Spread the love
Image of GCHQ donught building. Doesn't look like a doughnut. Look. Oh c'mon, can't you see - open your eye.

Original article republished from Open Democracy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International licence.

Exclusive: Government refuses to answer questions about its surveillance of immigration lawyers

Jenna Corderoy 24 April 2023, 10.00pm

The government has refused to answer questions about its “monitoring” of human rights lawyers – saying revealing the extent of its surveillance is not in the public interest.

In February, immigration minister Robert Jenrick admitted during a parliamentary debate that the Home Office is “monitoring the activities” of “a small number of legal practitioners”, after claiming that “human rights lawyers abuse and exploit our laws”.

Using Freedom of Information (FOI) laws, openDemocracy asked the Home Office how many legal practitioners it is monitoring, the nature of the monitoring and when it began. We also asked which unit within the department is carrying out the surveillance or if it has been outsourced to private firms.

The Home Office has now rejected the request, saying it is not in the public interest to disclose any of the information. openDemocracy has appealed against this decision.

Paul Heron, senior solicitor at the Public Interest Law Centre, told openDemocracy: “Government ministers spying on lawyers sounds like something from an authoritarian state. It is a direct threat to the rule of law and undermines the principles of justice and fairness.

“State surveillance of lawyers, and indeed any worker, is a clear violation of human rights and civil liberties and undermines the very foundation of a free and democratic society.”

Heron added: “The Home Office’s refusal to respond openly, adequately and indeed at all to the FOI request from openDemocracy regarding the monitoring strategy of lawyers by the Home Office should be a real concern, indicating not only a fundamental lack of transparency but a fundamental lack of accountability.”

State surveillance of lawyers, and indeed any worker, is a clear violation of human rights and civil liberties

Jon Baines, a senior data protection specialist at law firm Mishcon de Reya, shared Heron’s concerns.

Speaking to openDemocracy, Baines said: “The secrecy shown by the Home Office is regrettable, particularly as there is a distinct lack of any meaningful analysis of the public interest factors weighing in favour of disclosure.

“Secret monitoring of lawyers by the state has very serious connotations, and if the information really is exempt from disclosure, it is incumbent on the Home Office to give more detail and more justification for what is an inherently oppressive activity.”

The Home Office’s silence comes ahead of the return of the Illegal Migration Bill to the Commons this week, for its third and final reading before moving to the Lords. On Monday, the Equality and Human Rights Commission warned that the bill “risks breaching international obligations to protect human rights and exposing individuals to serious harm”.

The government claims the legislation will deter people from crossing the English Channel in small boats.

In February, Tory MP Bill Wiggin used a parliamentary session about a violent incident outside a hotel used to temporarily house asylum seekers in Knowsley, Liverpool to ask about legislating to stop such crossings.

Jenrick replied: “This is one of the most litigious areas of public life. It is an area where, I am afraid, human rights lawyers abuse and exploit our laws.”

The Home Office must give more detail and more justification for what is an inherently oppressive activity

Later in the debate, Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael asked: “The minister told us a few minutes ago that part of the problem here is human rights lawyers who abuse and exploit our laws… could the minister tell the House how many solicitors, advocates and barristers have been reported by the Home Office in the last 12 months to the regulatory authorities?”

Jenrick did not answer the question or provide figures. Instead, he said: “We are monitoring the activities, as it so happens, of a small number of legal practitioners, but it is not appropriate for me to discuss that here.”

At the time, Jenrick’s comments prompted dismay and concern among lawyers.

In its FOI refusal, the Home Office stated that a disclosure would “inhibit free and frank analysis in the future, and the loss of frankness and candour would damage the quality of risk assessments and deliberation and lead to poorer decision-making”.

Explaining its decision to withhold the information, the department said: “The Home Office has a process that allows caseworkers to check companies and individuals are qualified to provide immigration advice and reporting mechanisms that allows us to escalate any issues to regulatory bodies.”

Original article republished from Open Democracy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International licence.

Continue ReadingThe Home Office says you don’t need to know about its ‘spying’ on lawyers

Climate Coalition to UK Government: ‘You Had Your Chance—Now We’re Stepping It Up’

Read more about the article Climate Coalition to UK Government: ‘You Had Your Chance—Now We’re Stepping It Up’
The Big One protest April 2023 Central London
Spread the love

Original article republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0) licence. By BRETT WILKINS Apr 24, 2023

“Everything we do will be aimed at building and mobilizing the huge climate movement that turned out over the last four days,” said one Extinction Rebellion activist, referring to the Big One protests that ended Monday.

They gave British leaders until Monday to engage with their demands or face a renewed wave of civil disobedience, and as their deadline passed without a response, climate campaigners had a new message for the right-wing U.K. government: “You had your chance—now we’re stepping it up.”

Last week, a coalition led by Extinction Rebellion (XR) demanded that the U.K. government, led by Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, produce a plan for ending the fossil fuel era in the face of a worsening planetary emergency and include the climate movement in the process.

The green groups said that failure to meet their ultimatum would result in massive civil disobedience like last year’s demonstrations—in which activists blocked roads, bridges, and fossil fuel infrastructure; interrupted a speech by then-Prime Minister Liz Truss, a Tory; glued themselves to buildings; and splashed tomato soup on a protected Van Gogh painting.

“Collectively, we can unite, and demand better. We have the power in all of us.”

At the start of the year, XR vowed to no longer use “public disruption as a primary tactic” and to leave the “locks, glue, and paint behind” in favor of prioritizing large demonstrations like the “The Big One,” which ended Monday and featured nationwide protests including a massive Earth Day die-in outside Parliament attended by tens of thousands of people.

“The government had a week to respond to our demands and they have failed to do so,” XR co-founder Clare Farrell said in a statement. “Next we will reach out to supporter organizations to start creating a plan for stepping up our campaigns across an ecosystem of tactics that includes everyone from first-time protesters to those willing to go to prison.”

“Over the next three months, we will be translating the appetite for action amongst people at The Big One into a whole new range of campaigns and action across the country,” XR action coordinator Rob Callender said in a statement.

“Everything we do will be aimed at building and mobilizing the huge climate movement that turned out over the last four days so that we can return to Parliament this year from every corner and community in the country in even greater numbers,” he added. “And this time we won’t leave until our demands to the government are met. We are all ready to do the important work of taking back our power and creating a better future for everyone.”

Dominique Palmer of coalition member Fridays For Future said: “Collectively, we can unite, and demand better. We have the power in all of us.”

“As we have seen, we cannot wait for politicians to take action that prioritizes people and planet over profit, and so we must demand it,” Palmer added. “By applying pressure, we can win. And create an equitable future.”

Original article republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0) licence.

Continue ReadingClimate Coalition to UK Government: ‘You Had Your Chance—Now We’re Stepping It Up’

Just Stop Oil: “We won’t stop until our genocidal government ends new oil and gas”

Spread the love

#

just Stop Oil are increasing their slow march protests in Central London.

Just Stop Oil say:

Resisting new oil and gas expansion has never been more urgent or more necessary. The resumption of Just Stop Oil’s campaign comes after news that Thailand experienced heat index temperatures of 54C at the weekend prompting warnings from authorities for people to  remain indoors to avoid death from heatstroke. The severe heatwave that has swept across much of Asia, causing deaths and school closures in India and record-breaking temperatures in China, has been described as the worst April heatwave in Asia history. It is reported to have affected one in three people on the planet.

Since the Just Stop Oil campaign began on April 1st 2022, there have been over 2,100 arrests and 138 people have spent time in prison, many without trial. There are currently 2 Just Stop Oil supporters and 5 Insulate Britain supporters serving prison sentences for resisting new oil and gas.

In moments of emergency, we must stand up and be brave, we must stand up for good over evil, life over death, right over wrong. Just Stop all is calling on everyone to pick a side. Either you are actively supporting civil resistance fighting for life or you are complicit with genocide. The time is now. Join us and slow march while you still can. Our indefinite campaign of civil resistance begins today and will not end until our government ends new oil and gas.

Continue ReadingJust Stop Oil: “We won’t stop until our genocidal government ends new oil and gas”