In what marks a significant moment for the campaign for the Climate and Ecological Emergency (CEE) Bill, the London Assembly—led by Green AM, Zack Polanski—has officially thrown its support behind the CEE Bill and has called on the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to declare his support for the Bill.
Andrew Boff AM, Conservative Party AM and Chair of the London Assembly and has written to Zero Hour to express the Assembly’s support for the Bill.
COP26 failed to deliver the commitments needed to tackle the climate and ecological crises. Despite this, it is clear that local authorities across the country are taking action into their own hands.
Leonie Cooper AM, a Labour/Co-op AM, who seconded the motion to the London Assembly, said: This is precisely the type of action we need on the back of COP26 and it would commit our country to clamping down on harmful emissions, protecting and boosting biodiversity and hitting our targets on decarbonisation.
When it comes to the climate and biodiversity crises, we don’t have time for party politics and cross-party cooperation is absolutely vital in passing the CEE Bill.
This motion was proposed by the Green group, seconded by Labour, and supported by the Liberal Democrats—which is a fantastic example of political parties working together to support policy that will benefit both people and the planet.
As Zack Polanski AM, a Green member—and chair of London’s Environment Committee—who proposed the motion, said: We can make sure London leads the way, just like the Assembly did in 2018, by urging the Mayor to declare a climate emergency.
Working with colleagues from different parties is crucial in raising the alarm on the climate and biodiversity emergencies, and we urgently need more Westminster politicians to follow suit.
During the debate, which you can watch here, Liberal Democrat Cllr Hina Bokhari AM said: Our job as Assembly members is not to just push the UK Government. Our capital and its Mayor must lead by example.
It is critical that the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, now backs the CEE Bill. By doing so, he would be keeping London at the forefront of climate action and would demonstrate London’s commitment to preventing climate and ecological breakdown by backing the CEE Bill.