Last updated on April 22nd, 2020 at 11:31 am
Manifestos, speeches and polling cards are in full swing. The UK general election takes place on 12 December 2019, and with it comes politicians promising interesting ideas. Climate change is very much in the midst of every party's manifesto, and on 19 November during his speech at Westminster, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell from the Labour Party mentioned he is going to “rewrite the rules”.
McDonnell, who addressed the topic, mentioned: “Business bodies are calling for companies to improve climate-related financial reporting and for all companies to bring forward decarbonisation plans.” He then went on to say that “companies not taking adequate steps under Labour, should be delisted from the London Stock Exchange.” This would be made possible by upping the ante on the Corporate Governance Code, whereby if the Labour Party is to be voted in, they would amend legislation and “set out minimum standards for listing related to evidence the action being taken to tackle climate change”.
The question is: how will the Labour Party monitor such companies and what criteria will they have to meet, if they wish to remain listed on the London Stock Exchange? It's all a bit vague, but it's a bold statement, to say the least.
It all stems from the UK government's commitment to achieving net-zero by 2050. McDonnell added: “If we are to meet the climate change target to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels, we need to ensure that companies are pulling their weight alongside the government.”
Truly, the only ones that have been trying to tackle climate change for years are the Green Party. They've pledged to invest £100bn a year by 2030 to face the issues that surround climate change; want to build 100,000 new zero-carbon homes for social rent each year, and are looking to ban the construction of nuclear power stations.
No matter where you live in the world, government plays a big role in the fight to combat climate change. Here in the UK, this year's general election will play a pivotal role. Have a read of “where the parties currently stand on the key issues” on the BBC's website.
Who will you be voting for, and why? Let us know in the comments section, below.