‘We’re not remotely prepared’: Labour MPs fear party has gone soft on climate crisis

Britain has seen a summer of record-breaking wildfires, deadly heat and drought with almost 2, 900 heat associated deaths recorded in England during May and June alone. Homes have been destroyed more recently by the fires in the West Midlands and deadly wildfires have swept across Europe. Despite the ever more visible impacts of the climate crisis, there is widespread concern that there has been no big political push for it at the centre of British politics or a renewed case for net zero.

Some Labour MPs believe the government’s caution is a huge mistake. One said the government’s approach is “a failure to recognise where our vote is”. Jeevun Sandher, the Labour MP for Loughborough, and a parliamentary private secretary in the energy department argues climate is an electoral dividing line Labour should embrace because the party’s voters remain strongly supportive of net zero even though support has dropped on the right.

Another Labour MP added: “We’re not remotely prepared for the fact that our voter base is radically changing. We’re trying to ride two horses. Half of our movement is based on net zero and left-leaning values and we’re still running scared of Reform.” The political pressure from the right has been clear this week.

Reform UK’s deputy leader, Richard Tice, prompted a big backlash from nurses, medical experts, politicians and campaigners for urging British people to enjoy the warmth of the recent heatwaves while dismissing efforts to tackle the climate crisis. That means we can take on the French – fantastic. Let’s celebrate some of these things rather than just be sort of doom and gloom about it.” Claire Coutinho, the shadow energy and net zero secretary, called for cheap electricity to take priority over net zero targets.

In a speech on Wednesday, she said the UK should focus on bringing down the price of electricity and then let “consumer choice be king”, abandoning what she believes are expensive net-zero policies in favour of a cheap energy system that will rely on more nuclear and gas. But the British people are not as divided on the issue as the political debate may suggest. Recent polling from More in Common found two in three Britons (67%) are worried about unbearably hot weather becoming more frequent in the UK, while 86% believe climate change was at least partly responsible for the recent heatwaves.

This includes 73% of Reform supporters, 87% of Conservative supporters and 96% of Labour supporters. However, fear over the climate crisis is decoupling from support for net zero. Even as climate concern remains stable, and spiked during the recent heatwave, support for Britain’s climate targets is eroding.