The Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, Caroline Lucas, has criticised “the climate-shaped hole at the heart of the Queen’s Speech”.
She spoke shortly after the Prince of Wales read out the speech which sets out the government’s law-making plans for the coming year.
Ms Lucas said: “As we have come to expect from this government, there was a climate-shaped hole at the heart of the Queen’s Speech today.
“On the very day when we’re hearing predictions from the Met Office that the probability of surpassing 1.5C heating within five years is now 50 per cent, the government has utterly failed to acknowledge let alone address this crisis.
“An energy security bill is to be welcomed but it rings hollow if it fails to provide a retrofit revolution – a mass programme of heat pumps and home insulation, designed to slash household energy bills, reduce energy demand and cut emissions while we’re at it.
“We desperately needed the government to tackle the root cause of our energy and climate security problems and adopt a fossil fuel treaty to keep fossil fuels in the ground.
“I’m also hugely disappointed at the absence of a nature bill. It’s a great irony that Prince Charles, such an ardent advocate for the environment, was forced to read out a speech which had nothing on the environment, and which dropped all plans for a ban on foie gras, fur imports and trophy hunting.
“Meanwhile, the government is determined to crack down on our justice system and the very core of our human rights to restore the balance of power in their own favour.
“This speech was the embodiment of a Tory party which is hell-bent on increasing its own powers, while turning a wilfully blind eye to the biggest crises of our time.”
Lloyd Russell-Moyle, the Labour MP for Brighton Kemptown, said on Twitter: “The smattering of ok bills (renters rights and social housing) is outweighed by unnecessary and oppressive bills on public protest, rights and competition.
“No serious talk of increasing wages and tackling cost of living with energy bill – more of the same failed competition policy.
“No serious talk of climate change or insulation for homes. No real mention of gender violence, no tax avoidance bill, no plan for adult social care, no employment bill.”
The smattering of ok bills (renters rights and social housing) is outweighed by unnecessary and oppressive bills on public protest, rights and competition. No serious talk of increasing wages and tackling cost of living with energy bill more of the same failed competition policy.
— Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP🌹🏳️🌈 (@lloyd_rm) May 10, 2022
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Here’s what Prince Charles said when he read out the Queen’s speech …
Her Majesty’s government’s priority is to grow and strengthen the economy and help ease the cost of living for families. Her Majesty’s government will level up opportunity in all parts of the country and support more people into work. Her Majesty’s ministers will continue to support the police to make the streets safer, and fund the National Health Service to reduce the covid backlogs. In these challenging times, Her Majesty’s government will play a leading role in defending democracy and freedom across the world, including continuing to support the people of Ukraine.
Her Majesty’s government will drive economic growth to improve living standards and fund sustainable investment in public services. This will be underpinned by a responsible approach to the public finances, reducing debt while reforming and cutting taxes. Her Majesty’s ministers will support the Bank of England to return inflation to its target.
A bill will be brought forward to drive local growth, empowering local leaders to regenerate their areas, and ensuring everyone can share in the United Kingdom’s success. The planning system will be reformed to give residents more involvement in local development (Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will improve transport across the United Kingdom, delivering safer, cleaner services and enabling more innovations. Legislation will be introduced to modernise rail services and improve reliability for passengers (Transport Bill).
Her Majesty’s ministers will bring forward an Energy Bill to deliver the transition to cheaper, cleaner, and more secure energy. This will build on the success of the COP26 Summit in Glasgow last year (Energy Security Bill). Draft legislation to promote competition, strengthen consumer rights and protect households and businesses will be published. Measures will also be published to create new competition rules for digital markets and the largest digital firms (Draft Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will establish the UK Infrastructure Bank in legislation, with objectives to support economic growth and the delivery of net zero (UK Infrastructure Bank Bill).
Reforms to education will help every child fulfil their potential wherever they live, raising standards and improving the quality of schools and higher education (Schools Bill, Higher Education Bill). Her Majesty’s ministers will publish draft legislation to reform the Mental Health Act (Draft Mental Health Act Reform Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will continue to seize the opportunities of the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union, to support economic growth. Regulations on businesses will be repealed and reformed. A bill will enable law inherited from the European Union to be more easily amended (Brexit Freedoms Bill). Public sector procurement will be simplified to provide new opportunities for small businesses (Procurement Bill).
New legislation will strengthen the United Kingdom’s financial services industry, ensuring that it continues to act in the interest of all people and communities (Financial Services and Markets Bill). The United Kingdom’s data protection regime will be reformed (Data Reform Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will continue to champion international trade, delivering jobs across the country and growing the economy. Legislation will be introduced to enable the implementation of the United Kingdom’s first new Free Trade Agreements since leaving the European Union (Trade (Australia and New Zealand) Bill).
Her Majesty’s ministers will encourage agricultural and scientific innovation at home. Legislation will unlock the potential of new technologies to promote sustainable and efficient farming and food production (Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will protect the integrity of the United Kingdom’s borders and ensure the safety of its people. Her Majesty’s ministers will take action to prevent dangerous and illegal Channel crossings and tackle the criminal gangs who profit from facilitating them. Legislation will be introduced to ensure the police have the powers to make the streets safer (Public Order Bill).
A bill will be brought forward to further strengthen powers to tackle illicit finance, reduce economic crime and help businesses grow (Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill). Measures will be introduced to support the security services and help them protect the United Kingdom (National Security Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will lead the way in championing security around the world. It will continue to invest in Her Majesty’s gallant Armed Forces. Her Majesty’s ministers will work closely with international partners to maintain a united NATO and address the most pressing global security challenges.
The continued success and integrity of the whole of the United Kingdom is of paramount importance to Her Majesty’s government, including the internal economic bonds between all of its parts. Her Majesty’s government will prioritise support for the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement and its institutions, including through legislation to address the legacy of the past (Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will ensure the constitution is defended. Her Majesty’s ministers will restore the balance of power between the legislature and the courts by introducing a Bill of Rights (Bill of Rights). Legislation will prevent public bodies engaging in boycotts that undermine community cohesion (Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions Bill).
Her Majesty’s government will introduce legislation to improve the regulation of social housing to strengthen the rights of tenants and ensure better quality, safer homes (Social Housing Regulation Bill). Legislation will also be introduced to ban conversion therapy (Conversion Therapy Bill). Proposals will be published to establish an independent regulator of English football.
In this year of the Platinum Jubilee, Her Majesty looks forward to the celebrations taking place across the United Kingdom and throughout the Commonwealth, and to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this summer.
Members of the House of Commons, estimates for the public services will be laid before you.
My lords and members of the House of Commons, other measures will be laid before you.
The UK produces 1% of global gases. For some strange reason we now import fossil fuels actually increasing our carbon footprint rather than use our own MASSIVE reserves. Yes we need to move away from fossil fuels but the way it is being done is increasing the cost of living for the poorest. Use our own reserves until we can phase them out and we have something else to replace them.
If you raise wild animals in their natural environment and raise more than you harvest, it is good for the environment and good for the animals because if you grow crops, you have to destroy the habitat and all the animals in order to plough and grow stuff. It is also good for the climate because wild animals are organic, free-range, low water and low carbon. That is why people in Southern Africa grow wild animals for hunting and meat. And if you are going to eat the animal, why throw away its skin and horns? All trophy hunted animals in regulated hunting (the only kind you can get CITES import permits for) are eaten, so it helps peoples incomes if you can get someone to pay for the skin and horns.
It is modern consumptive conservation and good use for poor dry land in Africa.
That is the government’s problem – a ban on hunting trophy imports will harm the poorest black people, the environment and the animals in Africa. It may be sad, but it is reality.
Complete fantasy.
People who hunt animals for their own enjoyment or condone it either have some psychological defect, have been brainwashed during their upbringing or are simply ignorant.
Start at home and ban all hunting here.
Steve…no fantasy…without hunting, you would starve. UK farmers have to hunt animals just to stop them eating your food and a million UK deer need hunting.. In South Africa, 100,000 people are employed by the consumptive wildlife industry, raising 15 million animals on 40 million acres of bush, producing 50,000 tons of venison a year. More than a million animals are shot, but more than that are born, so the numbers are going UP, not down. Trophy hunters take a few of the skins and horns, that’s all, but the animals get eaten. Its a great use for marginal dry land and very low carbon.
All of this is on private farm or community land EXTRA to the National Parks like the Kruger Park. Without hunting, the farmers would turn it all to cattle and kill all the wildlife, so your ban would kill millions of wild animals nd plunge thousands into unemployment, just so you can fondle your strange ideas.
Well we would expect Caroline and Lloyd to complain about the budget – that’s all they ever seen to do.
Caroline needn’t worry about the climate crisis – her councillors, together with her tame Labour friends, have promised to make the city carbon neutral by 2030 mainly by putting in cycle lanes 😀