Reacting to planned protests this week by farmers over changes to Inheritance tax [1], Green Party Food, Agriculture & Rural Welfare spokesperson, Emily O’Brien, said: 

“Farmers are feeling abandoned. They have suffered badly from Brexit, both via detrimental trade conditions and reduced subsidies. And tax breaks for agricultural land have inflated land values, making it harder for both new entrants and existing farmers.  

“It is right to clamp down on those who buy farmland to avoid tax and the Green Party strongly supports wealth taxes. But we also need the government to take action to ensure that hard working farmers can earn a decent income. In particular, in the face of our climate and nature crises, we need subsidies to focus on encouraging farmers to shift to nature-friendly farming. This will protect our food security and support the rural economy while allowing wildlife to recover.” 

Notes 

1. Starmer doubles down on ‘tractor tax’ claim ahead of huge protest | The Independent 

The four Green MPs yesterday wrote to the Foreign Secretary to clarify the Government’s position on the risk of genocide in Gaza.

Ellie Chowns said:

“The UK has an obligation to prevent genocide under international law. We know the Government has not described the Israeli government’s assault on Palestinians in Gaza as a genocide – the Prime Minister keeps telling us. But has it actually assessed the risk? And what will it take for the Government to recognise that obligation and act on it to prevent genocide? The Green MPs have written to David Lammy to get answers.

“The humanitarian and human rights situation in Gaza is dire. Israel’s government has cut off aid in Northern Gaza, and is now forcibly displacing the population from the North. The huge numbers of civilian deaths and the prospect of widespread starvation are intolerable.

“The Government must recognise that its approach has failed. It must take seriously the risk of genocide. And it must consider far more direct measures to incentivise a ceasefire including an end to arms sales, the introduction of divestments, boycotts and sanctions, prosecutions for all those who have committed war crimes and a plan for a viable Palestinian state.”

NOTES

Full text of the letter: https://elliechowns.org.uk/2024/11/13/letter-to-the-foreign-secretary/

Responding to briefings on Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Mansion House speech on pension funds reform, Green Party Co-Leader Adrian Ramsay MP said: 

“Chancellor Rachel Reeves needs to quickly set out the details of her headline-grabbing plans to create mega-pension funds to ensure that they provide the investment we need to urgently transition our economy beyond fossil fuels, as well as offering members who rely on them full financial, environmental and ethical protections. 

“The legal changes being proposed are aimed at freeing up billions to invest in infrastructure. We need to ensure that this is directed towards the climate-resilient infrastructure we so urgently need, particularly renewable energy, the national grid, the electrification of our railways and nature restoration. 

“Many local authority pension schemes have developed sophisticated ethical policies aimed at protecting members’ money from being invested in environmentally harmful industries. The new megafunds must enshrine these existing policies as minimum standards. 

“If and when different schemes are brought together, legislation must ensure that merged schemes deliver stronger environmental and other ethical protections and are not dragged down into investments in climate-damaging infrastructure such as airport expansions or fossil fuel companies’ greenwashing schemes. 

“We will also be looking for security for all the pensioners who rely on these funds. We must remember that pension funds are essentially made up of people’s hard-earned wages deferred to retirement. We cannot afford to have a handful of so-called mega-funds that increase risks.” 

Reacting to Keir Starmer’s public address at COP29 where he announced a new climate target for the UK to reduce the country’s emissions by 81% by 2035 against 1990 levels, Green MP Ellie Chowns said: 

“The announcement of an 81% cut in emissions by 2035 is welcome – we need to remove fossil fuels from our economy as rapidly as possible.  

“However, the transition to clean energy needs to be matched by moves on energy reduction. We need a mass home insulation programme and large-scale investment in public transport and active travel. Instead, we have seen Labour downgrade the retrofitting of homes, fail to make solar panels on new builds mandatory, hike bus fares by 50% and offer only loose change for walking and cycling.  

“Keir Starmer says he will not tell people how to live their lives, but he can put in place policies to support us to make changes that reduce emissions, cut bills and improve our health and wellbeing. This must involve every government department being laser focused on achieving our climate targets.”