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'Dangerous and Desperate': Sunak's Net-Zero Flip Condemned by Left, Right, and Center
"Sunak's U-turn today will be devastating for the people of the U.K. and for the planet we call home," warned one Scottish Green. "It's nothing short of evil."
Sep 20, 2023
Critics across the political spectrum—from Conservative members of Parliament and corporations to Greens and climate campaigners—reacted with anger and resolve Wednesday following the announcement by U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that his Tory government would retreat from some of its key net-zero commitments.
Speaking Wednesday at the Downing Street Press Briefing Room in London, Sunak said his government is still committed to reaching net-zero by 2050, but in a "more proportionate way" that would bring a "greener planet and a more prosperous future."
The rollback will reportedly include delaying a ban on the sale of petrol- and diesel-powered vehicles from 2030 to 2035, pushing back the phaseout of gas boilers, scrapping energy efficiency targets for some homes, dropping recycling plans, and canceling a planned air travel tax.
"This is a U-turn that will leave the Tories facing in the opposite direction of almost everyone, and finally end their hopes of reelection."
"No one can deny climate change is happening," Sunak said, adding that the county needs "sensible green leadership" instead of false choices that "never go beyond a slogan."
However, Conservative peer Lord Zac Goldsmith—who resigned his ministerial post earlier this summer due to what he called Sunak's climate "apathy"—called the prime minister's reversal "a moment of shame."
"His short stint as PM will be remembered as the moment the U.K. turned its back on the world and on future generations," he added.
Shadow Climate Secretary Ed Miliband led Labour condemnation of the reversal, which he called "a complete farce from a Tory government that literally does not know what they are doing day to day."
Brighton Pavilion Green MP Caroline Lucas slammed what she called Sunak's "coordinated, calculated, and catastrophic rollback."
"What this all reveals is that Sunak really doesn't seem to care about the climate in the slightest—it's little more than an afterthought," Lucas wrote in a Guardian opinion piece published Wednesday.
Sunak must call a general election by January 2025, and his Tories are trailing the opposition Labour Party in opinion polls amid persistently high inflation, slow economic growth, and rising inequality.
"If Sunak mistakenly thinks the climate is merely a political device to draw dividing lines between his party and Labour, he will fail on his own terms," wrote Lucas. "All it will do is draw an ever-greater divide between him and the people he seeks to govern."
Climate campaigners roundly condemned Sunak's decision.
"The government needs to double down now, not U-turn," Kennedy Walker, a U.K. organizer with the climate action group 350.org, said in a statement. "We have the opportunity to show what a transition to a greener economy that works for people and the planet can look like; we need to hold leadership to account to make sure it happens and they follow through on their own promises."
Riffing on the government's "long-term decisions for a brighter future" slogan, Extinction Rebellion U.K. wrote on the social media site X: "Short-term decisions for a shitter future. Remember, this government took £3.5 million in donations from Big Oil and other industries before licensing new gas and oil."
Many companies including automaker Ford and energy giant E.ON joined in criticism of the rollback.
"Our business needs three things from the U.K. government: ambition, commitment, and consistency. A relaxation of 2030 would undermine all three," Ford U.K. chair Lisa Brankin said Wednesday. "We need the policy focus trained on bolstering the EV market in the short term and supporting consumers while headwinds are strong: infrastructure remains immature, tariffs loom, and cost-of-living is high."
Some critics noted that Sunak's announcement came on the same day the leaders of many nations—but not Britain or the world's two top carbon polluters, China and the United States—gathered in New York for the United Nations Climate Ambition Summit.
"We're in a climate emergency. The deadly impacts of climate change are here now and we have to act urgently," Labour London Mayor Sadiq Khan—the only U.K. speaker at the summit—told The Guardian Wednesday. "We have seen record high temperatures in London earlier this month and the hottest ever July. Over the last two years, we have experienced unprecedented wildfires and flash floods, destroying homes and livelihoods."
"This government's response flies in the face of common sense and shows they are climate delayers," Khan added. "It beggars belief that not only are they watering down vital commitments, but they are also passing up the opportunity to create green jobs, wealth, and lower energy bills—as well as failing to give investors the certainty they need to boost the green economy."
Sunak's reversal also infuriated many people in Scotland.
"Rishi Sunak has blood on his hands," National Union of Students Scotland president and Scottish Young Greens co-convener Ellie Gomersall told The National. "His excuse? It's too costly. Well then all the more kudos to the Scottish government who are still moving forward with net-zero policies like low-emission zones, phasing out gas boilers, cheaper public transport, all the while on a budget severely restrained by the confines of devolution."
"And of course when the Scottish government does try to implement simple yet effective measures like a deposit return scheme, Westminster comes along and blocks it," she added. "Sunak's U-turn today will be devastating for the people of the U.K. and for the planet we call home. It's nothing short of evil."
Alistair Heather, a Scottish writer and TV presenter, told The National that he was "almost pleased" by Sunak's announcement.
"This is a U-turn that will leave the Tories facing in the opposite direction of almost everyone, and finally end their hopes of reelection," he explained. "For mainstream voters, who understand that a clear, urgent movement of travel towards a green future is the best chance we have of mitigating the worst effects of the climate collapse, the Tories have made themselves completely unelectable. Good... Fuck the Tories. Mon the independence."
"With the Left AWOL, our species is being quick-marched to extinction."
The outrage was felt far beyond U.K. shores.
"At a time when the U.K. should be providing global leadership in transitioning off fossil fuels, especially in recognition of the impact its historical emissions have had in bringing about the climate crisis, the U.K. government is considering backtracking on already insufficient commitments," 350.org Europe regional director Nicolò Wojewoda said in a statement.
Yanis Varoufakis, a former Greek finance minister who heads the left-wing MeRA25 party, wrote on X that "Sunak's U-turn is a reflection of the total Europe-wide collapse of the market-based, neoliberal consensus on how to tackle the climate crisis. It marks the center‐right's new path."
"And with the Left AWOL," he added, "our species is being quick-marched to extinction."
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'Pinkwashing': Just Stop Oil Blocks London Pride Parade in Sponsorship Protest
'These partnerships embarrass the LGBTQ+ community at a time when much of the cultural world is rejecting ties to these toxic industries'
Jul 01, 2023
Just Stop Oil protesters temporarily blocked London’s Pride Parade Saturday afternoon to protest the event accepting sponsorship money from “high-polluting industries.”
Pride faced accusations of “pinkwashing” over its decision to make United Airlines the headline sponsor of this year’s event.
Seven protesters were arrested at 1:30 pm after blocking the road in front of a Coca-Cola truck. Coca-Cola is seen as the world's biggest plastic polluter.
LGBTQ+ members of Just Stop Oil called on organizers to condemn new oil, gas, and coal licenses and stop allowing the inclusion of floats from these corporations in the parade.
James Skeet, a Just Stop Oil spokesperson, said in a statement:
“Pride was born from protest. It speaks to how far we’ve come as a community, that high-polluting industries and the banks that fund them, now see Pride as a useful vehicle for sanitizing their reputations, waving rainbow flags in one hand whilst accelerating social collapse with the other. It is queer people, and particularly queer people of color in the global south, who are suffering first in this accelerating social breakdown. What would those who instigated the gay liberation movement during the Stonewall riots in 1969, make of the corporatized spectacle Pride has now become?"
“These partnerships embarrass the LGBTQ+ community, at a time when much of the cultural world is rejecting ties to these toxic industries. We call on Pride to remember the spirit in which it was founded and to respect the memory of all those who fought and died to secure the rights we now possess whilst taking the necessary steps to protect our community long into the future.”
London Mayor Sadiq Khan speaking before the parade said:
“I agree with protesting in a way that is lawful, safe, and peaceful. I think that Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil are really important pressure groups trying to put power on those who have power and influence."
“I fully support the right to protest. It’s really important to recognize the joy of democracy is protest."
“I am somebody who feels quite passionately that we have to tackle the climate emergency. And I feel quite passionately about encouraging people to join the movement to tackle the climate emergency. In my view, protest should be peaceful, lawful, and safe.”
Peter Tatchell, the legendary LGBTQ+ rights campaigner, and prominent member of the Gay Liberation Front and the civil resistance group OutRage! Said:
“I helped organize the first Pride in the UK in 1972 and have attended every Pride London march since then. Pride was always meant to be both a celebration and a protest. From the outset, we stood in solidarity with other struggles for freedom and social justice, against corporate pinkwashing and all forms of exploitation. We saw queer liberation as just one aspect of a wider liberation movement.”
“Climate destruction is destroying communities, jobs, homes and lives across the world, especially in poorer countries. Fossil fuels are endangering the survival of humanity – including LGBTQ+ people. Our community must not collude with environment, species and climate destroying companies.”
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In 'Landmark' Moment, London Coroner Lists Air Pollution as a Cause of Young Girl's Death
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the coroner's report must mark "a turning point so that other families do not have to suffer the same heartbreak."
Dec 15, 2020
Public health campaigners applauded a "landmark" ruling by a coroner in London Wednesday, as air pollution was officially recognized as a cause of a person's death, in what anti-pollution groups said was an international first.
Philip Barlow, a coroner in the city's Lewisham neighborhood, found after a two-week inquest that air pollution "made a material contribution" to the asthma attack and respiratory failure which killed nine-year-old Ella Kissi-Debrah in 2013. The pollution was mostly caused by heavy traffic on one of London's busiest streets, the South Circular.
"We urgently need to see a seismic shift in the pace and extent to which the government, local authorities, and clinicians work together to tackle our air pollution health crisis."
--British Lung Foundation
The level of exposure Ella was subjected to was illegal according to guidelines set by the World Health Organization (WHO), Barlow found, with particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxide emissions reaching excessive levels.
"Ella died of asthma contributed to by exposure to excessive air pollution," Barlow said in his report. "The whole of Ella's life was lived in close proximity to highly polluting roads. I have no difficulty in concluding that her personal exposure to nitrogen dioxide and PM was very high."
The inquest came after a seven-year campaign by Rosamund Kissi-Debrah, Ella's mother, who said Barlow's ruling secured "justice for her which she so deserved."
Kissi-Debrah was pleased that Barlow's conclusion was "so decisive, so comprehensive," but emphasized to reporters that Ella's case is now about the health and safety of other children.
"Still, as we walk around our city where we have high levels of air pollution, there are still illegal levels of air pollution now as we speak, so this matter is far from over," Kissi-Debra said.
As Kissi-Debrah noted, the WHO has reported that seven million people die each year as the result of air pollution.
Ella's cause of death on her death certificate was updated following the inquest to say "acute respiratory failure, severe asthma, and air pollution exposure."
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said Wednesday that the coroner's report "must be a turning point so that other families do not have to suffer the same heartbreak as Ella's family."
"Toxic air pollution is a public health crisis, especially for our children, and the inquest underlined yet again the importance of pushing ahead with bold policies such as expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone to inner London," Khan said. "Ministers and the previous mayor have acted too slowly in the past, but they must now learn the lessons from the coroner's ruling and do much more to tackle the deadly scourge of air pollution in London and across the country."
Khan plans to expand London's Ultra Low Emission Zone by October 2021, among other reforms, and a study by Kings College London found that following a "trend of inaction seen between 2010 and 2016," the city's air is expected to be within legal limits for nitrogen dioxide by 2025.
The British Lung Foundation said Wednesday marked "a landmark moment in the fight against toxic air."
"We urgently need to see a seismic shift in the pace and extent to which the government, local authorities, and clinicians work together to tackle our air pollution health crisis," the group said.
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'The Future We Want': London Joining Global Trend of Car-Free Streets to Cut Pollution, Fight Covid-19
"London's road to recovery cannot be clogged with cars," says Mayor Sadiq Khan.
May 15, 2020
Following in the footsteps of leaders in Milan and New York City who are heeding global calls to #BuildBackBetter from the coronavirus pandemic, London Mayor Sadiq Khan on Friday unveiled plans to create "one of the largest car-free zones in any capital city in the world" to improve local air quality and encourage more walking and cycling.
"This is genuinely exciting," London-based author and physicist Helen Czerski tweeted of the plans. "Yes, of course, it will be disruptive (and like any change, there will be both winners and loser at the start). But it could also make London a far more human place and a new sort of city, with huge health benefits for everyone."
Environmentalists and public health advocates also welcomed the initiative. The U.K. branch of the advocacy group Greenpeace declared: "This is a great first step!"
Khan announced the upcoming transformation of central London streets--intended to help promote social distancing--in a joint statement with Transport for London (TfL). The government body will release more details in the weeks ahead, but the statement said roads between London Bridge and Shoreditch, Euston and Waterloo, and Old Street and Holborn may soon be limited to buses, pedestrians, and cyclists.
"By ensuring our city's recovery is green, we will also tackle our toxic air which is vital to make sure we don't replace one public health crisis with another."
--London Mayor Sadiq Khan
Beginning Monday, the city will also reintroduce fee schemes for drivers that aim to cut pollution and help tackle the climate emergency: the low emission zone, the ultra low emission zone, and the congestion charge--the last of which may temporarily increase next month.
Khan has made tackling London's polluted air a top priority since taking office in 2016. The Labour Party member released figures last month showing how air quality in the U.K. capital has "dramatically improved" in the wake of both anti-pollution measures introduced in 2017 and the city's pandemic-related lockdown.
" Covid-19 poses the biggest challenge to London's public transport network in TfL's history," Khan said Friday. "It will take a monumental effort from all Londoners to maintain safe social distancing on public transport as lockdown restrictions are gradually eased."
"That means we have to keep the number of people using public transport as low as possible," he added. "And we can't see journeys formerly taken on public transport replaced with car usage because our roads would immediately become unusably blocked and toxic air pollution would soar."
The mayor urged all of the city's 32 boroughs to support the plans and work with officials to implement similar restrictions. He encouraged all Londoners to walk and cycle more while steering clear of public transit "unless it is absolutely unavoidable."
Khan also highlighted that the plans have benefits beyond ensuring the safety of transport in London as the city lifts coronavirus restrictions. "By ensuring our city's recovery is green," he said, "we will also tackle our toxic air which is vital to make sure we don't replace one public health crisis with another."
Theo Highland of Sustrans, a U.K. charity that works to make it easier for people to walk and cycle, called the initiative "a potential game-changer" and echoed Khan's call for boroughs to embrace efforts to make miles of roads across the city more walkable and cycle-friendly while reducing toxic traffic.
"TfL's bold and ambitious plans to get London moving at this critical time are exactly what's needed right now," said Highland. "All boroughs must now make the changes our streets need to give Londoners space to move around safely and build our spirited city's resilience as we begin to bounce back from this pandemic."
"Sustrans is also here to help local authorities wanting to transform their streets with new infrastructure and give their residents confidence to cycle," he added. "Taking immediate action will help tackle health inequalities, air pollution, and the climate emergency. And by making successful changes permanent we'll emerge from this pandemic as a healthier, happier, and fairer London."
The Guardian reported Friday that David Miller of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, which recently has helped coordinate similar plans in metro areas around the world, congratulated Khan "for showing the world what is possible when we reimagine our cities for the benefit and health of everyone."
"These measures announced in London today, including major car-free zones, will clean the air that Londoners breathe, improve public health both during the Covid-19 pandemic and long into the future, while also helping to avert the climate crisis," Miller said. "This is the future we want."
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'Groundbreaking Result for Climate Justice': UK Appeal Court Rules Plans for Third Runway at Heathrow Airport Illegal
Celebrating the win, campaigners declared that "no airport expansion is compatible with a #ClimateEmergency."
Feb 26, 2020
Climate campaigners celebrated an "amazing and historic win" Thursday after a United Kingdom court ruled against plans to build a third runway at London's Heathrow Airport because the government's approval of the expansion "had not taken into account its own firm policy commitments on climate change under the Paris agreement."
The Court of Appeal, which is second only to the U.K.'s Supreme Court in England and Wales, called the government's failure to consider its climate obligations "legally fatal" and said that "the court will not permit unlawful action by a public body to stand." Heathrow is Europe's busiest airport and its two runways are currently at full capacity.
Although the court's ruling means the third runway could still technically be built in the future, advocacy groups opposed to the airport's expansion welcomed the Thursday's decision as a victory. As Friends of the Earth put it: "This ruling is an historic and groundbreaking result for climate justice and for future generations."
Putting the legal win into a global context, Friends of the Earth tweeted that the court's decision is "a victory for all those facing flooding in the U.K. right now, for those who've had to flee fires in Australia, for the people around the world on the front line of this #ClimateCrisis."
U.K. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps responded to the ruling on Twitter, saying that "airport expansion is core to boosting global connectivity. We also take seriously our commitment to the environment. This [government] won't appeal today's judgement given our manifesto makes clear any #Heathrow expansion will be industry led."
Heathrow Airport--which is owned by Ferrovial, Qatar Investment Authority, and China Investment Corp--said Thursday that "we will appeal to the Supreme Court on this one issue and are confident that we will be successful. In the meantime, we are ready to work with the government to fix the issue that the court has raised."
Tim Crosland, director of the British legal charity Plan B, which brought the legal challenge, welcomed the court's decision and the government's acceptance of it.
"It would have been hard to imagine this outcome even a couple of years ago, but as the scale and impacts of the ecological crisis become clearer, with people dying and being displaced in the U.K. and around the world, it's vital we reject the politics of division and unite in adversity," Crosland said in a statement (pdf).
"This is an important moment for all of us, and for our young people in particular. Some sanity is finally prevailing," he added. "It's all those people who have been working so hard to sound the alarm, whether by taking to the streets or in other ways, who have made this outcome possible. The message is finally getting through. The bell is tolling on the carbon economy loud and clear."
Plan B along with fellow climate campaigners and experts suggested that the ruling could have far-reaching consequences in terms of forcing governments worldwide to honor their climate commitments. Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh, an international public law expert at the Netherlands' Leiden University, told the the Guardian that "its implications are global."
"For the first time, a court has confirmed that the Paris agreement temperature goal has binding effect," said Wewerinke-Singh. "This goal was based on overwhelming evidence about the catastrophic risk of exceeding 1.5degC of warming. Yet some have argued that the goal is aspirational only, leaving governments free to ignore it in practice."
Advocacy groups from across the globe took to Twitter Thursday to express excitement over the court's ruling:
Climate activists in the U.K. and beyond also celebrated the news on social media:
British politicians at various levels of government also welcomed the court's decision:
"Today's landmark judgement against a third runway at Heathrow is the most important environmental case for a generation, but we will not stop here," London Mayor Sadiq Khan vowed Thursday. "The fight for a greener, cleaner London continues."
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London and NYC Mayors Call on Every Major City in the World to Divest From Climate-Destroying Fossil Fuels
"Instead of having to move cities, let's move money!"
Jan 06, 2020
Ahead of a forum for local leaders from across the globe scheduled for March, Mayors Bill de Blasio of New York and Sadiq Khan of London on Tuesday urged every major city in the world to divest from the fossil fuel industries that are wrecking the planet.
"This toolkit will demonstrate to other cities that taking action on divestment is not only achievable but also essential to investing in our future."
--London Mayor Sadiq Khan
As part of their global call, the mayors unveiled a toolkit for cities interested in divesting their pension funds from fossil fuels "to help avert climate breakdown."
Divesting from Fossil Fuels, Investing in Our Future: A Toolkit for Cities (pdf) is a product of C40 Cities, a network of 94 municipalities whose leaders collectively represent over 700 million people and are committed to pursuing actions to meet the goals of the 2015 Paris climate agreement.
"By taking Divest/Invest action, mayors around the world can demonstrate their strong climate leadership and signal their support for achieving the crucial 1.5degC goal," the toolkit says, referencing the Paris accord's aim to limit global temperature rise this century.
The resource frames fossil fuel divestment and sustainable investment as an important piece of comprehensive strategies to tackle the global climate crisis while also demonstrating the financial benefits with case studies from Berlin, London, Oslo, and Stockholm.
"There is ample evidence that Divest/Invest action on a portfolio level has no negative financial implications--indeed it may even have a positive impact--and can be fully aligned with pension fund trustees' fiduciary duties," the executive summary explains.
The toolkit details six key steps that city officials should take to join the global movement: Commit to Divest/Invest; engage the city pension funds; develop and implement policy; monitor progress; communicate progress and engage with external stakeholders; and promote Divest/Invest.
"These are not easy steps, but they are absolutely necessary," de Blasio said in a statement.
In a foreword for the toolkit, de Blasio wrote of his city's fight for a cleaner future. "I am proud that New York City is the first city in the nation to set in motion a comprehensive divestment and investment strategy as part of our New York City Green New Deal," he wrote, "a massive effort to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, which also includes mandating changes to buildings and powering city government with renewables."
Khan, who penned the toolkit's second foreword, shared some of his personal experiences with the Divest/Invest movement in the statement Tuesday.
"Over the last three years, London has led from the front on divesting from fossil fuels and addressing the climate emergency," Khan said. "At City Hall, I am working with the London Pensions Fund Authority to take all possible steps to divest its remaining investments in fossil fuel industries. I have also encouraged local authorities and organizations in London to do the same."
"However, we need all cities to act now to help protect our planet for future generations," he added. "So, together with New York and C40, I'm calling on every major city in the world to follow suit. This toolkit will demonstrate to other cities that taking action on divestment is not only achievable but also essential to investing in our future."
The toolkit for cities was released ahead of the C40 Divest/Invest Forum set to be held in NYC March 16-18. The forum will feature a public event, speeches from investment and city leaders, and a closed-door workshop where representatives from cities and their pension funds can discuss divestment strategies and progress.
Along with London and New York City, several cities from across the globe are involved with the forum: Auckland, Boston, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Durban, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Oslo, Paris, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, and Stockholm.
Bill McKibben, co-founder of the global environmental advocacy group 350.org, welcomed the new toolkit and cities' ongoing efforts in a statement Tuesday.
"Thanks to C40 and leading city mayors like Sadiq Khan and Bill de Blasio, divestment has become a standard--and crucial--part of the toolkit for taking on the climate crisis," McKibben said. "It makes no sense--morally, practically, or financially--to invest in the industries endangering our cities. And on the list of actions humans will have to take to deal with the planet's heating, it combines relatively low cost and effort with remarkably high leverage."
Referencing the frightening conditions that some major coastal cities now face as human activities continue to fuel the global climate emergency, he added: "Instead of having to move cities, let's move money!"
Cities are just part of the global movement to divest from the coal, gas, and oil industries. According to Fossil Free, a project of 350.org, Divest/Invest campaigners have secured commitments from over 1,150 organizations--including faith-based groups, philanthropic foundations, educational institutions, governments, pension funds, corporations, nonprofits, and healthcare entities--with more than $12 trillion in total assets.
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The US Just Killed 30 Innocent People in Afghanistan. Let's Pretend It Was London.
What if the victims of last week's U.S. drone strike had lived somewhere other than Afghanistan?
Sep 22, 2019
A US official in the UK has indicated that he is "working with local authorities" and "examining the intelligence" that led to a drone strike late last week that took the lives of 30 customers at a restaurant in central London. It appears that the intended target of the strike was a gathering of IS leaders, and that the group attacked -- at an Italian restaurant celebrating the 70th birthday of one of the confirmed dead -- was mistaken for the IS cell. In addition to the dead were over 40 wounded, many with life-threatening injuries. A number of children were among the 70 casualties.
While the US government has so far refused to confirm responsibility for the strike, a State Department spokesperson has said that, should in transpire that the US is responsible for the deaths, "collateral damage, while extremely rare, is a regrettable consequence of the ongoing efforts of the US to combat international terrorism," and that, "citizens of London should be well aware by now that there are certain areas in the city that should be avoided." The State Department spokesperson also noted that all strikes are conducted with the "utmost care," and that it is not unusual for civilian death tolls to be "significantly exaggerated" by authorities in the UK.
Residents of the UK have been active on social media condemning the attack, noting that the international media show little or no interest in reporting on mass civilian casualties of US drone strikes in predominantly Christian nations. "Basically, the media might report that some people were killed in an attack and that's it. No follow-up. No discussion of guilt. It's like the lives of white Christian bankers in London count for less than nothing," said UKJames on Twitter. Another Twitter user asked, "How can it be that the US is allowed to attack who and where they want in England, killing civilians, without any consequences? These were innocent people eating dinner. Where's the outrage?"
Many of the posts on Facebook and Twitter also pointed out the how the "War on Terror" deaths of wealthier Christians in Europe are ignored by the media, while poorer Muslims, killed in places like Afghanistan and Yemen, get disproportionate coverage and attention from major news outlets.
Not all comments on social media, however, were sympathetic to the victims in London. "If these people in don't want to get killed, why do they even live in England? Move somewhere else. Just not here!" tweeted EagleUSA1990. Others were quick to note that there was no evidence that those killed in the restaurant were not, in fact, members of IS, and that, "If you take your children out at night in a place like London it's your fault of they get killed. What kind of people are these? They shouldn't even have kids."
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has expressed outrage over the deaths, saying that a full investigation into the attack must take place, including criminal charges of negligent homicide against those responsible -- this, despite the fact that the US has indicated it will not recognize any legal decision made outside of a US court. Khan noted that this is the fourth US drone attack in the UK in recent months: attacks that have claimed over 1,000 innocent lives in the UK in the last decade. One of these included a strike in July of this year that hit a wedding on the outskirts of the city of Manchester killing 44 participants, including the bride and her entire family. As the wedding took place in an "area of interest" to the US government, however, an internal investigation resulted in a finding of "no culpability" on the part of the United States.
Despite the US government refusal to claim responsibility, families of the Manchester victims were nevertheless offered $500 compensation each by US authorities, "in memory of the dead, and as a sign of goodwill on the part of the United States of America."
(US drone strike intended for Isis hideout kills 30 pine nut workers in Afghanistan)
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Protesting Against Air Pollution Crisis, Extinction Rebellion Stalls Rush-Hour Traffic in London
Campaigners in the city's southeastern borough carried signs that read "This Air Is Killing Us" and "Let Lewisham Breathe."
Jun 14, 2019
Dozens of students, parents, teachers, and professionals joined a Friday protest organized by Extinction Rebellion that temporarily stalled morning rush-hour traffic in London's southeasten borough of Lewisham to push politicians to more boldly address dangerous air pollution across the city.
The demonstration was just the first in a series of actions Extinction Rebellion (XR) is planning for the "Let Lewisham Breathe" campaign. Lorna Greenwood, who protested Friday despite being nine months pregnant, told the Guardian that "the idea was to stop traffic temporarily to put pressure on all of our politicians--Lewisham council, [London Mayor] Sadiq Khan, and the government--to confront the air pollution crisis."
Though Khan has called the air quality issues that plague his city a "health crisis," he criticized Friday's action. A spokesman for Khan told ITV: "The mayor recognizes we face a climate emergency and shares the protesters' passion for tackling this issue. But he is clear that causing disruption for Londoners in this way is unacceptable."
Commuters were reportedly more supportive. Toting signs that declared "This Air Is Killing Us," campaigners handed out leaflets and cake to drivers, and urged them to shut off their vehicles while they waited at the three locations of the sit-ins, according to organizers. They also warned of the disruption in advance, both online and with banners along the affected routes, and notified local schools and emergency services.
"There was some backlash but not as much as you would expect because people in the area know how bad the problem is," Greenwood said. "Lewisham suffers really badly with air pollution so it's at the forefront of everybody's minds and it's something that really unites people. It doesn't matter what job you do or how old you are, people have to breathe the same air."
"The environment catastrophe will far outweigh the damage caused by a few roadblocks on a Friday morning," 35-year-old demonstrator Harry Gibson, who also participated in XR's London demonstrations in April, told the Evening Standard.
"The planet's not going to last, it's not protected with the way that we're going," he warned. "We need to look to the future for future generations."
Pete Pello, 32, concurred. "I'm here because I can't ignore the facts anymore. I don't feel comfortable standing by and letting future generations deal with the world we are creating for them. It's something I feel I have to do," he said in a statement from XR.
"It's been amazing so far," Pello added. "People are being patient and waiting. We've had a few angry shouts but most people are pretty relaxed and supportive. There's a really great mix of people here from school children to older people. For lots of them, it's the first time they've done anything like this."
Freya, a 13-year-old protester, told the Evening Standard: "I'm here because lots of people don't care. Most adults don't listen to the children. They can't stop polluting. This is the only way to make change."
"We are in a climate and ecological emergency that requires a change in all aspects of society," protester John Hamilton told MetroUK, pointing out that "Lewisham Council themselves passed a motion declaring the borough to be in a state of climate emergency."
This Is Local London reported Friday that Lewisham Councillor Sophie McGeevor, cabinet member for the environment, said, "As one of the first councils in the country to declare a climate emergency, we share the same goal as Extinction Rebellion--to save the planet and clean up our air."
"We understand that without action the planet is heading towards a climate catastrophe," she said. "We are taking bold action to improve air quality whether that is: supporting the ULEZ and campaigning for it to include the whole borough, investing in cycling and walking infrastructure, proposing to make the most polluting vehicles pay more for parking, installing green walls outside schools, increasing the number of electric vehicle charging stations, or investing in Lewisham's award winning green spaces."
McGeevor added, "We want to go further and faster to meet this challenge, but with local government having gone through nearly a decade of austerity we need central government support to do so."
In addition to calling on Khan and the U.K. government to do more to tackle air pollution and the climate crises, members of XR are also urging the Lewisham Council to follow the lead of the Oxford City Council in establishing a citizens assembly to weigh in on how the government should address the issues.
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A Demagogue, Fascist, and Serious Threat: UK Mobilizes to Make Sure Trump Knows He 'Is Not Welcome'
"Donald Trump is just one of the most egregious examples of a growing global threat. The far-right is on the rise around the world, threatening our hard-won rights and freedoms."
Jun 03, 2019
With the city of London effectively on "lockdown" in anticipation of the protests--complete with the now-famous Trump Baby Blimp--that are expected to flood the city's streets on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump touched down in the United Kingdom Monday for his first state visit shortly after tweeting an attack on London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
"Sadiq Khan, who by all accounts has done a terrible job as Mayor of London, has been foolishly 'nasty' to the visiting President of the United States, by far the most important ally of the United Kingdom," Trump tweeted just before landing at the Stansted Airport in London on Monday. "He is a stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London, not me."
"We know Trump isn't a joke--he is responsible for rampant xenophobia, sexism, and transphobia and the creeping rise of far-right politics."
--Anna Vickerstaff
Trump's attack on Khan came after the London mayor--who granted permission for protestors to fly the Trump baby blimp during Tuesday's mass demonstrations--accused the U.S. president of behaving like "the fascists of the 20th century to garner support" and said he would join the U.K. Labour Party in boycotting the state visit.
"Donald Trump is just one of the most egregious examples of a growing global threat," Khan wrote in an op-ed for The Guardian on Saturday. "The far-right is on the rise around the world, threatening our hard-won rights and freedoms and the values that have defined our liberal, democratic societies for more than seventy years.
Khan further explained his opposition to "rolling out the red carpet" for Trump in an interview Sunday on Sky News:
Khan's view of Trump as the face of a global far-right movement was echoed by the organizers of Tuesday's demonstrations, which are expected to bring hundreds of thousands of people into the streets across the U.K.
Anna Vickerstaff, part of the team of demonstrators that will be "babysitting" the Trump blimp Tuesday, said the protests against the U.S. president are about far more than displaying a silly balloon designed to humiliate Trump.
"We know Trump isn't a joke--he is responsible for rampant xenophobia, sexism, and transphobia and the creeping rise of far-right politics," Vickerstaff wrote in an op-ed for The Independent on Monday. "His climate denial and persistent facilitation of the fossil fuel industry is a death sentence for communities in the global south. But if flying a balloon caricature is what gets under his skin--then that's exactly what we're going to do."
"Our balloon," wrote Vickerstaff, "is part of a proud history of political satire in the U.K. that sends a clear, orange, message to Trump and his politics of hate that they are not welcome here."
According to the U.K.-based Metro, a "huge police and security operation" is in place as London authorities prepare for the mass protests against the U.S. president's three-day state visit.
In addition to the Trump baby blimp, the Metro reported, a "16ft talking robot of Mr. Trump sitting on a gold toilet is also expected to make an appearance. It depicts the American leader with his trousers round his ankles while tweeting and says some of his well-known phrases such as 'stable genius' and 'no collusion,' as well as breaking wind."
More seriously, Amnesty International is expected to unfurl massive banners from Vauxhall Bridge that read "Resist sexism," "Resist racism," and "Resist Trump."
Ahead of Trump's arrival in the U.K., The Guardian expressed the view of many Britons when it declared in an editorial Sunday that "the president is not welcome."
"Mr. Trump is a demagogue who represents a threat to peace, democracy, and the climate of our planet," the newspaper said. "As elected leader of the U.K.'s closest ally, he can't be ignored. But making him, his wife, and four adult children the honored guests of the Queen risks legitimizing his destructive policies, his cronyism, and his leanings towards autocracy."
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Leaving 'One Hell of a Mess Behind,' British PM Theresa May Admits Brexit Defeat and Resigns
"Theresa May is right to resign," said Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn in response. "She's now accepted what the country's known for months: she can't govern, and nor can her divided and disintegrating party."
May 24, 2019
Characterized by critics and political observers as an ignominous end of her three years as leader of the Tory Party and captain of the right-wing ship trying to steer the country toward Brexit, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May announced her official resignation on Friday morning as she finally admitted defeat.
Though she said in a speech outside 10 Downing Street that she had "done everything" she could "to convince MPs to back" her Brexit deal, "Sadly, I have not been able to do so."
May said she will serve until June 7 and then step aside.
Unmoved by the remarks, and noting her disastrous record as prime minister, The New Statesman's Stephen Bush commented that May "bowed out with the rampant shamelessness that has typified her public statements, and leaves one hell of a mess behind her."
As CNN reports:
May was forced into making Friday's announcement after losing the support of her Cabinet, many of whom were fed up with the ongoing turmoil over Brexit.
The last straw for Cabinet ministers appears to have been the latest version of May's Brexit plan, which she unveiled on Tuesday. In an attempt to win over opposition lawmakers, May offered the House of Commons the chance to vote on a second referendum--a concession that was bitterly opposed by some senior members of her government.
Her fate was sealed by the leadership of the 1922 Committee--which represents the interests of rank-and-file lawmakers in May's Conservative Party--who threatened to change party rules to allow a vote of no-confidence. May survived an earlier confidence vote in December last year, and under current rules was immune to challenge for another year.
One minister, who spoke with The Daily Beast's Jamie Ross, characterized her troubled three-year run as prime minister and ultimate failures this way: "She fucked up, then she fucked off."
According to Ross:
May will leave no lasting legacy. The sole purpose of her leadership was to win domestic support for a deal with the European Union that would allow Britain to leave the bloc in a relatively painless manner. The deal was resoundingly rejected three times and her only answer was to try to get lawmakers to vote on it yet again, with minor tweaks. Her most important supporters, finally sick of living in Groundhog Day, decided enough was enough.
In response to May's resignation, Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn--who earlier this week said in Parliament that May's time "was over" as he called for a new general election--issued a statement on Friday saying, "Theresa May is right to resign. She's now accepted what the country's known for months: she can't govern, and nor can her divided and disintegrating party."
"The burning injustices she promised to tackle three years ago are even starker today," Corbyn added. "The Conservative party has utterly failed the country over Brexit and is unable to improve people's lives or deal with their most pressing needs."
Political activist Nikhil Goyal said that "May has been one of the worst PMs in British history. She lives behind a shameful racist and anti-worker legacy."
With speculation that Boris Johnson, the former right-wing mayor of London, stands the best chance at succeeding May as the Tory's leader, Corbyn said that whoever the party selects "must let the people decide our country's future, through an immediate General Election."
The Labour Party itself backed that call shortly later:
London Mayor Sadiq Khan, a member of the Labour Party, said that while he didn't "agree with Theresa May on much," he had "some sympathy" for her given that hard-line "Brexit extremists" had made negotiating a deal impossible.
"It is totally unacceptable for Britain's future to be decided by these same people," Khan said in a statement. "The British people, particularly the next generation, deserve far better than this."
MP Caroline Lucas, co-leader of the left-wing Green Party, agreed May's task to deliver a Brexit deal was an impossible one that no prime minister could likely deliver and argued her resignation only clarified the need for a second national referendum on Brexit.
"While May was almost uniquely ill-equipped to be negotiator we needed, truth is she was given impossible job," Lucas said in a tweet. "Case for #PeoplesVote stronger than ever."
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