Why I support the CAN Bill

Voters in Mid Cheshire care about our local wildlife and want to protect the beautiful places we all love—and are rightly concerned about their rising energy bills, polluted rivers, and more extreme weather events.

If I’m elected as the next MP for The Salt Towns, I will work with local businesses, community leaders and residents to ensure that Mid Cheshire has a prosperous, nature-rich future ahead of it; for our families, our friends and for future generations.

We’re already feeling the impact of climate change across the UK with the increasing frequency and severity of climate events; such as the flooding of Northwich Town Centre which happens more frequently than ever. Like many people across our community, I’m deeply concerned about the damage this is having on our lives and livelihoods.

The flooding brought about by Storm Henk a few months ago could have had disastrous consequences for Northwich, had it not been for the success of the town’s flood plan. However, as the climate crisis worsens, such mitigation won’t suffice for long.

As the Liberal Democrats candidate for Mid Cheshire in the upcoming Westminster election, I’m proud to announce my support for the Climate and Nature Bill; the new legislation we need to ensure we lock, in law, a serious and joined-up plan to get to grips with the climate and nature crises we face.

The next in-take of MPs have a serious and solemn responsibility to take action in the crucial years up to 2030. The end of this decade is crucial in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and in terms of halting and reversing the destruction of our planet. However, there are also many, many co-benefits of taking action. Not only is it more cost effective to act now, and act early; but taking serious steps to restore nature and deliver a clean energy transition can create the green jobs of the future, boost energy and food security across the UK, and improve people’s health and wellbeing.

The Climate and Nature Bill stands as a crucial step in delivering a joined-up plan for the climate and nature crises and would lock our international commitments into law. It stands as the only proposed piece of legislation that would tackle the deeply intertwined crises of climate and nature together—and has the backing of almost 50,000 members of the public and 1,500 organisations, politicians, and scientists from across the UK—including The Federation of Women’s Institutes, Friends of the Earth, The Co-operative Bank and CPRE: The Countryside Charity.

The Climate and Nature Bill oers us the opportunity to once again set the international standard for climate action—just as we did with the Climate Change Act 2008—and show our commitment to a just transition, nature restoration, and an overall greener, fairer society. I believe the Climate and Nature Bill is essential in addressing the challenges we face—as this is the last Parliament we have to turn the tide on climate change and the breakdown of nature.

I urge all Westminster candidates to join me in supporting the Climate and Nature Bill and to demonstrate to the public that this next Parliament will have climate and nature as a top priority. Together, and only together, can we make the next parliamentary session one of serious action.

I will work hard for Northwich, Middlewich & Winsford so that together we can restore and expand nature, so that we can lower energy bills and stop pollution from entering our seas, rivers and waterways. The Lib Dems fair deal for our environment includes transforming firms like United Utilities into public benefit companies and subjecting them to a tougher regulator than OFWAT, to help protect our rivers & seas.

We can improve the health of our communities, protecting them from the worst impacts of climate change. We can transition our industries and economy to create more opportunities for local people. Local firms like Storengy in Stublach are investing in biogas and hydrogen for a zero carbon future. In Winnington, there are  plans to build a solar energy farm. We have huge potential for a greener future, but we can only achieve it with everyone in Mid Cheshire supporting it.