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EDINBURGH MP JOINS UP TO CLIMATE CHANGE CHALLENGE

Mark Lazarowicz pledges to reduce his personal CO2 emissions by 25%

Mark Lazarowicz, Labour MP for Edinburgh North & Leith, has signed up to a pledge to reduce his personal carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 25% over the next five years. Mark is one of the 40 MPs – and was the first Scottish MP - who have so far made a personal commitment to put words into action by making the cuts in the emissions over which they have personal control. The '25/5 Personal Carbon Emissions Challenge' was launched in July, 2005 by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Climate Change.

Mark said "The evidence that climate change is happening is overwhelming - we are witnessing some startling effects already, such as the thinning of the polar ice caps, the melting of permafrost, the greater incidence of extreme weather events and warmer summers. Whilst I welcome any progress towards a comprehensive international approach to solve the problem, I believe individuals can also begin to address the issue straightaway, and if they do so in large numbers that will send a powerful signal to politicians to speed up their international and national responses to the challenge of global warming. And if MPs are asking others to look at what they can do to cut their carbon emissions, then they should set an example themselves”.

Mark continued: "There are many ways in which individuals can act to reduce their own carbon emissions, and make their own contribution to help tackle climate change. The first step is to simply audit my energy consumption and see where savings can be made.

The kind of steps which can be taken include:

  • using domestic appliances which are more energy efficient;
  • better loft insulation;
  • changing electricity supplier to one which sources its energy from renewables;
  • installing microgeneration in your home to help produce your own energy;
  • simply turning down central heating by one degree or fitting more energy saving light bulbs all helps.
Cutting carbon emissions through being more energy efficient also saves money – it’s not something which should be painful to do. The degree to which we can make our own personal contribution to reducing carbon emissions will vary from individual to individual depending on our own personal circumstances – but I am confident we can all do something.

A big way in which many of us can cut personal carbon emissions is by looking at the way we travel and aiming to use the method which produce less carbon emissions. As an MP, I travel a lot, and I will certainly be looking at ways of changing my travel patterns to help me meet the 25/5 target.

I’ve already begun to take steps to cut my personal carbon emissions to help me meet the pledge which I’ve signed up to. I hope that other Scottish MPs and MSPs will join me in signing up to the 25/5 pledge”.

The Chair of the All Party Climate Change Group, Colin Challen MP said "I welcome Mark’s commitment to tackling this issue. MPs are in a powerful position to demonstrate how we can reduce our energy consumption without pain. Mark’s clear determination to address the problem strengthens the hand of all those who have to convince others of the urgent necessity to reach an international deal on a climate change."
23rd February 2006
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