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A race for nature

MPs join ex-Olympians in Thames boat race ahead of landmark climate vote
Katie Hill - Editor-in-Chief, My Green Pod
Roz Savage MP in a race for nature

Westminster was caught by surprise yesterday (Tuesday) morning as a flotilla led by MPs and ex-Olympians raced past Parliament ahead of next week’s vote on the Climate and Nature Bill.
 
More than 200 MPs – 88 of them Labour – have already thrown their weight behind the bill which sets out to boost Britain’s emission reduction targets and increase protections for nature.

Back, don’t block the bill

Bill sponsor Lib Dem MP Roz Savage and ex-Olympian Etienne Stott MBE joined dozens of climate campaigners who braved blustery conditions as they rowed through Westminster yesterday.
 
Bemused tourists and commuters looked on as the flotilla raced under Westminster Bridge and past Parliament, calling on the government to support the bill ahead of next Friday’s vote.
 
The flotilla was cheered on by MPs watching from the House of Commons terrace.

Make UK ‘a world leader’

The three eight-man rowing boats, accompanied by various support boats, began their voyage on the Victoria Embankment next to Waterloo Bridge and raced to Cadogan Pier in Chelsea.
 
Climate and Nature Bill co-sponsor Roz Savage was the first woman to row solo across three oceans – the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian – and spearheaded this morning’s Thames flotilla.
 
The backbencher says the Bill will make the UK a ‘world leader in tackling the climate and nature crisis’, citing President Trump’s return to the White House as a major threat to global progress.

‘The Bill makes the UK a world leader in tackling the climate and nature crisis. That leadership is needed now more than ever with the US set to be taken over once again by a climate denier.
 
‘The legislation I am proposing would supercharge our journey to net zero while boosting safeguards to protect nature, making sure we save the planet without leaving anyone behind.
 
‘Parliament is ready to act but we need the Government to back and not block the Bill so MPs can vote with their own hearts next week.’

ROZ SAVAGE MP
Climate and Nature Bill sponsor

Give MPs a free vote

Support for the cross-party proposals has rapidly grown in recent days, with devastating wildfires in the United States thought to be focusing MPs’ minds.
 
Zero Hour environmental campaigners who are championing the Bill say MPs should be afforded a free vote, in line with Kim Leadbeater’s Assisted Dying Bill which was passed in November.
 
However, the government is yet to publicly set out its position ahead of next week’s vote, despite supporting the Bill’s ‘ambition and objectives’ while in opposition.

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