NEW GROUND SUMMER 2018 Campaigning for environmental change & social justice HOW PLASTICS GOT POLITICAL Andy Burnham My vision for Manchester Kerry McCarthy Mary Creagh MP Voluntary action will Every day the Tories delay, never be enough more plastics are littered Welcome to our 2018 Summer Edition CONTENTS JAKE SUMNER & PHILLIP FENTON WELCOME 2018 / Jake Sumner and Phillip Fenton 2 The influence of the BBC programme, Blue set benchmarks to stop the polluters. Planet grows each week. An institution, NEWS / SERA News 3 the European Union, once won Time Labour, can lead change too, not just magazine’s person of the year. Perhaps a TV through the leadership of local authorities FEATURE / My Vision for Manchester – Mayor Andy Burnham 5 programme should now be taking a bow. It or challenging the government but as Louisa Casson has had a transformative effect on public a movement. We should be going FEATURE / Plastic Politics – 7 attitudes to the environment including plastic free. SERA is supporting the FEATURE / Every day the Tories delay, more plastics are littered – Mary Creagh MP 9 the impact humans make. Blue Planet motion passed by several branches for has helped spur change and it has been Labour to audit the plastic it has used FEATURE / One Less Bottle in the Ocean – Fiona Llewellyn 11 referenced by almost all the writers in our over 12 months and present a plan to plastics focused edition of New Ground. conference to phase them out. The SERA FEATURE / The Corporate Response to Plastic – Jonathon Porritt and Ivana Gazibara 12 Parliamentary Network of MPs is putting What we have seen is the mainstreaming a focus on plastics too and SERA will be FEATURE / How Warm Words, Little Action and Plastic Recovery Don’t Mix – Alan Whitehead MP 14 and resonance of an environmental concern holding events at Labour conference. JAKE SUMNER FEATURE / The Last Straw – Holly Lynch MP 16 - the environment getting political. This is is the co-chair of to be welcomed. At the heart of SERA’s The case for change is not simply SERA. He tweets OPINION / The Importance of SERA and the Path for Change – SERA founder Barry Sheerman MP 18 red-green politics and as we campaign for environmental but social. Take bottled at @Policy_Jake water, and the 16 million bottles not an ambitious Labour green programme, OPINION / Voluntary Action will Never be Enough – Kerry McCarthy MP 20 is environmental progress and social recycled each day. Bottled water is justice entwined not separate concerns, expensive, particularly when there’s quality, OPINION / Beyond the Plastic Packaging and the Plastic Pact – Libby Peake 22 environmental and economics policies affordable water from our taps - the lack linked not detached, and people integral of public water facilities hits the poorest. OPINION / Tackling Plastic Waste Post-Brexit – Kate Green MP 23 to a compelling environmental programme. It’s excellent to see the Labour-run Welsh government commit to be the first ‘refill PHILLIP FENTON VIEW FROM LONDON / Wetwipes and Fatbergs – Debbie Leach 25 The spotlight is on plastics. The huge nation’ and to people being able to fill up is the co-editor of New Ground and is Christina Tiran extent and impact of plastic pollution is reusable bottles with drinking water at a VIEW FROM FASHION / Fashion and Microplastics – 27 National Organiser now being revealed and better understood network of public buildings, businesses, for SERA. ViEW FROM INDUSTRY / Everything is Connected – David Newman 28 every day. Beaches strewn with plastic community and transport hubs. Spot on. waste litter across all parts of the globe, TIME TO ACT / Take this motion to your CLP and talk to your Labour councillors 31 seas scarred by plastic in the very deepest There are lessons from abroad too, and not parts and with waste swirls the size of just the Nordic nations but a lesser known TIME TO ACT / Quick Wins – Leonie Cooper AM 32 countries. Plastics have entered the food example, Sudan. Jake was in the country chain - in June for example, researchers in April. The country suffers from plastic R O G U N from Hull and Brunel universities found pollution including bags strewn about (it W D plastic particles in all mussels tested. The is recently introduced a ban). But, what is ABOUT E N scourge is posing a self-generated risk noticeable is the network of water pots to humans and wildlife across the planet. every few streets for people to freely use. SERA NEWS Local people fill up and maintain them, New Ground is published by SERA, Labour’s environment There are strong voices, including the which are under cover like a small bus NEWS 8 campaign www.sera.org.uk 1 Chair of the Environmental Audit Select shelter, and provide cups for people too. S 0 Email: [email protected] U 2 Committee, Labour MP Mary Creagh. The age-old technology of earthenware M M E R She has highlighted the 2.5 billion coffee jugs keeps the water cool. It saves plastic If you would like to contribute to cups thrown away each year which bottles, costs and provides a communal future editions or join our mailing In case you missed it, we were proud to SERA’s successful and high profile can’t be recycled, and called for a 25p benefit and respite in the searing heat. list, please contact Phillip Fenton, SOCIALIST SOCIETY be named Socialist Society of the year at campaign on air quality, A Breath of levy - which the Government is yet National Organiser at SERA the 2017 Excellence Awards. The Award Fresh Air, was particularly highlighted to heed. Starbucks though has trailed [email protected] The goal to remove single use plastics, OF THE YEAR recognised SERA’s important voice and for praise and recognition. Launched in a levy and Waitrose has committed to change products to remove plastic waste role within the Labour Party and the work 2016, the campaign has highlighted the end disposable cups. More is needed. The views expressed in New and recycle 100% of plastics produced, is Ground are those of the of members, the executive and the excellent environmental and social justice impacts a huge challenge. We will still be affected authors and not necessarily work of our staff, and we would like to thank of the air pollution crisis and called for Government have announced a bottle by the damage we’ve already done but, if those of the editor, SERA its everyone who has been involved in any of Labour to back a new Clean Air Act – deposit return scheme but it must be we act ambitiously now, we’ve a chance executive or its members. our campaigns or activities. something that was made a manifesto far more ambitious, driving change to live in a world that we want to see. commitment in the 2017 General Election. across production and industries and Printed and published directing more research to harness This edition of New Ground has by UNP, The I.O. Centre, the UK’s leading science base to work inspirations from SERA members, Labour Unit 7, Skeffington Street, with industry to make food production representatives and NGOs setting out their London, SE18 6SR the most sustainable in the world, and ambitions on how we purge the plastic. 2. SERA Campaigning for environmental change & social justice NewsSERA Campaigning for environmental change & social justice 3. NEWS NEWS FEATURE We previously reported in New Ground how A range of proposals and announcements MANCHESTER’S SERA were working with Andy Burnham on were made including: brining forward his Green Summit - a policy commitment the date by which Greater Manchester is GREEN SUMMIT first announced at a SERA event, we made carbon neutral by at least a decade are proud to report back on what was to 2040; launching a plastic-free Greater THE PROBLEM WITH PLASTIC a successful event. Over 700 key local Manchester campaign; and investing up businesses, environmental experts and to £150m to transform cycling and walking R O interest groups from across Manchester in the city-region. A second event is now G U N AND MY VISION FOR W D came together to accelerate Greater in the pipeline that will bring together E N Manchester’s green ambitions. The day findings from the first summit and shape included headline speakers including Andy the next steps for Greater Manchester. MANCHESTER SERA himself, workshops, Q&A panels and more. NEWS 8 ANDY BURNHAM 1 S 0 U 2 M M E R A third runway at Heathrow is once again We concluded by saying Labour must be HEATHROW THIRD being proposed. SERA contacted every ambitious; a vote against expansion is Labour MP calling on them to oppose not a vote against the economy, rather it RUNWAY VOTE expansion of Heathrow airport as we is an opportunity to call for an economic believe the government’s approach is and environment policy that goes hand fossil fueled with no commitment to the in hand; where growth is not reliant on environment or the country’s climate change fossil fuels but on renewable technology, Blue Planet 2 was instrumental in and cutlery, for which plastic is widely used commitments. We also argued expansion allowing us to meet our commitments We can lead the way in raising awareness of the global plastic due to its lightness, low cost, and practical would increase problems around air and on the climate and social justice. problem. Whilst it is widely accepted features. These types of single-use plastics noise pollution. And we pointed out how creating the first single that the majority of plastic waste items are a major source of plastic leakage the government has repeatedly ignored its SERA’s full statement on Heathrow found in the oceans mainly originates use plastic free city into the environment, as they can be difficult legal duties to take action on air quality.