A clean energy revolution is in reach within a generation

In a few days’ time world leaders will gather in Paris for the UN summit on climate change. It will be a poignant moment. The Paris attacks were acts of hatred, designed to divide us from one another, crush people’s hopes and destroy lives. By contrast these talks, taking place in the same city, will be a huge opportunity for many countries to come together to put individual interests aside for our common good. It will be our chance to give hope to people around the world, to show through collective action what real leadership looks like and to make progress on one of the pressing issues of our times.

The challenge posed by climate change is one we can only tackle together. That’s why I’m proud to stand alongside more than 60 of Labour’s council leaders as they set out the huge contribution we will make to that collective effort. Those Labour Councils have pledged to cut the carbon pollution from our towns, cities and regions to zero by the middle of this century.

Their actions stand in stark contrast to a national government that, in slashing support for solar, wind and community energy, is dismantling our commitment to tackling climate change at home at the very moment when we are required to show leadership abroad.

The Labour Government was among the first in the world to recognise both the economic opportunities from cleaning up the economy, and the risks that would follow if climate change is not checked. It was Tony Blair who put the issue on the agenda of the UN Security Council and made this a priority at the G7 summit. David and Ed Miliband passed into law the world’s first Climate Change Act, and Gordon Brown’s active support was a decisive factor in the creation of the UN’s Global Climate Fund which helps the poorest countries in the world protect their citizens from the impact of rising seas and extreme weather.

By contrast, we now have a government who pose a false choice between cutting energy bills and action on climate change. It’s a deliberate strategy to divide and rule, pitting the poorest at home against the poorest overseas. In reality the Tories are helping neither, choking off jobs and investment in the UK’s renewable industry, abandoning communities who are transitioning away from fossil fuel industries, and ruling out some of the cheapest forms of clean energy on ideological grounds.

As we go into the Paris negotiations, for the first time the UK is not on course to meet its legally binding EU renewable energy targets. Failure to do so leaves the UK liable to EU fines, costing us money which could fund a revolution in clean energy projects, energy efficiency and action to alleviate the tragedy of fuel poverty and winter deaths.

With the government facing criticism on its energy policy from a range of voices – from Al Gore to the CBI – our international reputation and our ability to exercise leadership is seriously in question. But thanks to Labour councils across the country, the UK will go to Paris and stand alongside our international partners with a strong story to tell about our collective future and the contribution the UK will make. A clean energy revolution is in reach, within a generation, and Labour will lead it.