Guernsey Press

Climate group lobbies deputies a second time

REPRESENTATIVES of climate change pressure group Extinction Rebellion Guernsey returned to the steps of the Royal Court yesterday.

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Sophie Shand was one of the Extinction Rebellion Guernsey members who greeted States members when they arrived for the Policy & Resource Plan debate. (Picture by Peter Frankland, 25044164)

For the second month in succession, they were handing out books and engaging States members as they entered the building for a special meeting to discuss this year’s Policy & Resource Plan.

Among the proposals is one to ‘mitigate climate change’, but while welcoming this move the group would like to see things moving more swiftly, said Simon Harvey, one of the protest’s organisers.

‘It’s great to see these things being addressed,’ he said.

‘We would just like to see it all happen a little bit more quickly.

‘The issue just seems to be downgraded, and not really considered a proper emergency,’ added Rob Gregson.

They were hoping members backed amendments to the plan which would see the profile of climate change raised significantly, including the addition of the words ‘climate change emergency’ to the proposals, and recognising that the island needed to address the situation urgently.

There was also an amendment calling for a change to the Rules of Procedure to ensure that all committees include any proposition’s likely effect on financial, environmental (including climate change) or health and wellbeing.

However, a late amendment from Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq did not have the support of the group, since it was calling for the States’ Assembly and Constitution Committee to go away and review this aspect of the rules ‘which are clearly unworkable’.

Mr Gregson said that States members were ‘pretty receptive’ as they entered the building, with copies of the book, There is No Planet B, available to those who did not pick one up last month.