Climate Change

It’s the elephant in the room that none of the other parties want to talk about. If we don’t reduce the amount of carbon being burnt, then our planet will heat up causing catastrophic climate change. The seas will rise, crops will fail, extreme storms and droughts will become more common.

This is not inevitable. The solutions are simple. We can generate our energy from the wind, the sun and the waves, as well as making our homes, factories and transport systems more efficient so we don’t need so much energy. After lots of difficult negotiations, countries got together in 2015 and agreed to do just that.

But for some reason, the Conservative government seems determined to ignore that agreement. Through its actions over the last two years, it has shown that it is more interested in preserving the profits of the big fossil fuel energy companies that it is about our future. It has slashed support for renewable energy and given the go ahead for ‘fracking’ to extract more fossil fuels from under our homes and parks, risking the safety of our water supplies. It has committed billions to building a new nuclear power station just 40 miles from our constituency that will take decades to complete and will produce electricity that is more expensive than renewables.

David Davies has repeatedly ignored the scientific evidence, denied climate change and blocked attempts to reduce carbon emissions. Monmouth doesn’t need an MP who buries his head in the sand. As a science graduate, I understand the urgency of the problem and can see what needs to be done. I am committed to resisting the vested interests who put their profits before our children and taking action to build a sustainable energy future for all our sakes.

Environment

I want my garden and the surrounding neighbourhood to be beautiful and safe, with plenty of bees pollinating the flowers and birds singing their songs. But nature is so interconnected that what happens here affects, and is affected by, the environment in Wales, Britain and the wider world. The decisions that are made by our local council and our national government have a profound impact on the world we live in and that our children will inherit. For example:

  • The UK government’s slashing of support for renewable energy generation and energy conservation is wrong in so many ways, not only fuelling global warming but also undermining our economy and the development of jobs in the green energy sector.
  • The UK government has been at the forefront of defending the bee-killing neonicotinoid insecticides that the rest of the EU want to ban.

If elected, I would use my voice as a County Councillor to call for more action locally, nationally and globally to preserve our beautiful and diverse planet.

Environment promises

Concerns about the environment are not limited to climate change. Our physical, mental and spiritual health is greatly affected by our connection to the natural world around us. But we don’t see the environment as a resource just for our own benefit – we see that nature is valuable in its own right.

We want to make sure that our air is clean, our water safe to drink and our food healthy. We want to protect our precious wildlife and preserve their natural habitats. We see that our ancient forests and woodlands have a value that is greater than the timber that can be cut down.

If elected I will work hard for a ban on the bee-killing neonicotinoid insecticides. It’s simple biology – if we kill all the bees, they won’t be able to pollinate the flowers and blossom, and then where will we be? The rest of the EU want to ban them – why has the Conservative government been trying to stop the ban?

I will also vote against any attempt to bring back the cruel practice of hunting foxes with dogs.