Landmark legal cases by Plan B aim to protect our young people’s future
Published 28.5.21
The momentum around the climate litigation movement is gathering fast! In February the UK Supreme Court ruled that Nigerian communities could bring their claims for compensation against Shell’s ecological devastation in the UK Court. In April, the German Supreme Court ruled that Germany’s climate change laws violated fundamental rights by placing an intolerable burden on younger generations.
This week there have been two more key court judgments. First, in a watershed moment for the accountability of the corporations which prioritise profit over life, a Dutch Court ruled that Shell must slash its CO2 emissions by 45% by 2030. Second, an Australian court ruled that the Government has a duty of care to safeguard young people from the climate crisis.
We have the POWER is delighted to be getting behind this movement by announcing today our backing for PlanB.Earth, the climate litigation charity, which alongside three young people, and the StopTheMaangamizi Campaign, launched a legal action against the Government on 1 May over the Government’s violations of their rights to life and rights to family life.
These legal rights (incorporated into UK law by the Human Rights Act) require the Government to take practical and effective action to tackle the climate emergency declared by Parliament on 1 May 2019, in accordance with the Paris Agreement.
Instead, the Government, while claiming to be a “climate leader”, supports the issue of new oil and gas licences, commits £27.4bn to a road-building programme, allows the City of London to finance the carbon economy around the world, and cuts finance flows from the communities on the frontline of the ecological crisis, who need them most. This is a critical moment for humanity, and we can’t allow such duplicity to go unchallenged.
Please join us in getting behind, Plan B, Ade, Jerry, Marina, and all those on the frontline of the crisis, in particular the younger generation and the Global South.
