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COP26, Lobbying and Transport

There's been no shortage of coverage of COP26 over the past few weeks, and some quick wins announced in the first week. At least everyone recognises (superficially at least) what the Green Party has been saying for decades.  Action on deforestation, action on methane, and financial institutions signing up to a net-zero alliance are all to be welcomed. We want proper, independent monitoring of progress on these promises too.

However it's only as the final week of negotiations gets under way that we learn that fossil fuel supporters have more delegates than any single country, more than the combined total of the 8 countries worst affected by climate change and more than twice as many as the UK. Global Witness, a charity, has found 503 people with links to fossil fuel interests had been accredited for the climate summit.

One of the biggest groups is the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) backed by many major oil companies who promote offsetting and carbon trading as a way of allowing them to continue extracting oil and gas. But offsetting is greenwashing. It does not stop carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere and some schemes have been linked to indigenous people being forcibly removed from their lands. Oil, gas and coal companies have been openly and covertly lobbying for decades against action on climate change, their aim to slow progress towards net-zero and to continue making a profit as long as they can.

Is it any wonder that the protesters outside on the streets of Glasgow mistrust the negotiations and want to see action, rather than more hot air and empty promises? In Cumbria we suffer our share of floods - thankfully this year (so far) no loss of life or major flooding of homes but still an estimated £1million worth of damage and much heartache and many anxious moments.

Locally too, words need translating into actions to reduce carbon. Zero Carbon Cumbria aims for Cumbria to be carbon neutral by 2037 But when we look at the County Council's transport plans, it is hard to see they will deliver carbon neutrality and reverse all the damage that cars cause to health, fitness and communities. It is disturbing to note that the only concrete plans are for more roads, catering for more cars, most of which will still be contributing to climate change because they will run on fossil fuels. Change to electric vehicles is frustratingly slow.

So when Barack Obama tells people to stay angry, we couldn't agree more, and when he says "Vote like your life depends on it, because it does"

Jill Perry