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No to new coal

Thanks for taking the first step in campaigning to stop the government’s proposed new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth in Kent. Gordon Brown is facing his first test since pledging to put Britain at the forefront of efforts to combat climate change. A proposal to build the UK’s first coal-fired power station in more than 30 years will land on his desk in the next few weeks.

New coal power stations would fly in the face of advice from the world’s top climate scientists, who warn that global emissions must peak and then fall dramatically within the next 100 months to avoid the most dangerous effects of climate change.

Even Mr Brown’s ‘special adviser’ on climate change, Al Gore, said in August: “I can’t understand why there aren’t rings of young people blocking bulldozers and preventing them from constructing coal-fired power stations.” Greenpeace couldn’t have put it better. The only question remaining is if the Prime Minister is listening.

As soon as mid-April John Hutton MP, the Minister for DBERR (Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform), will decide if Kingsnorth in Kent will see the first new coal-fired power station in the UK for decades.

This should be ringing alarm bells for anyone concerned about climate change because burning coal is the biggest threat to the climate and in the UK would wipe out any progress in cutting greenhouse gas emissions since 1998. Solutions to capture carbon from power plants are at a trial stage and not deployable until the 2020s.

The company behind the power station plans, EON, proposes to spend £1.7bn on two 800MW ‘supercritical’ coal units. It says the plant will be marginally (20%) more efficient than what is there now with a small reduction in CO₂ emissions to 8m tonnes a year. It also says the plant will be ‘capture ready’ in preparation for carbon capture being ‘considered as an option’ at some later date. To this end the proposal sets aside some land.

The UK’s electricity companies are at different stages of planning a series of new coal plants in Scotland, Tilbury in London, Fiddler’s Ferry in Lancashire, Ferrybridge in Yorkshire and Blyth in Northumberland. These amount to c10.6GW of new and entirely unabated coal capacity. This map shows the proposed locations of these new coal plants.

We must call for there to be a public enquiry into Kingsnorth new coal power station in Kent and stop the government’s plans for new coal.

• Download the Stop Kingsnorth briefing

• Download the FAQ on Kingsnorth

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Target Labour MPs

It is important to get this campaign to the attention of as many MPs as possible. However, we need to also make sure our time and energy is spent as effectively as possible. We feel that by focusing on Labour MPs and the Labour Party we can make this a major political issue that could affect the next election.

Certain MPs are particularly important in this campaign. In collaboration with other organisations working to stop Kingsnorth, we’ve compiled this list of priority Labour MPs. All these MPs have connections to Hutton or to the Kingsnorth decision.

The second set of MPs to target are Labour MPs in marginal seats. With a general election on the horizon, these MPs will be particularly sensitive to issues of concern to their constituents. By targeting marginal constituencies, we can push coal and climate change onto the election agenda.

Look at these two lists to see if your MP is among those targeted. Remember, if you’re living away from home at university, you effectively have two MPs, one at home and one at uni. As a resident in each constituency, you can lobby both of them!

When you have lobbied an MP on this list, or if you are planning to, please let James in the P&P office know. We will share this information with other organisations like WDM and Greenpeace, so that together we can make sure all the target MPs are lobbied.

Priority Labour MPs

Nearest P&P Group	MP	Constituency	Further information
Aston	Sion Simon	Erdington
Derby	Margaret Beckett	Derby South
Edinburgh	Alistar Darling	Edinburgh South West	Chancellor of the Exchequer
Glasgow	Ann McKechin	Glasgow North	Member of International Development Select Committee
Imperial	Tessa Jowell	Dulwich & West Norwood	Minister for the Olympics and Minister for London (Paymaster General)
Kings	Harriet Harman	Camberwell & Peckham	Minister of State, Government Equalities Office
Leeds	John Battle	Leeds West	Member, International Development Select Committee
Leeds	Hilary Benn	Leeds East	Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Leicester	Patricia Hewitt	Leicester West
Loughborough	Andy Reed	Loughborough
Newcastle	Jim Cousins	Newcastle Central	Member, Treasury Select Committee
Northampton	Sally Keeble	Northampton North	Member, Treasury Select Committee
Nottingham	Nick Palmer	Broxtowe	PPS Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform
Oxford	Andrew Smith	Oxford East
Reading	Martin Salter	Reading West	Member, Home Affairs Select Committee
Sheffield	David Blunkett	Sheffield Brightside
Salford	Hazel Blears	Salford	Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
Warwick	Jim Cunningham	Coventry South	PPS Department for Work and Pensions
Volunteers needed	Ed Balls	Normanton	Secretary of State for Department for Children, Schools and Families
Volunteers needed	Caroline Flint	Don Valley	Minister of State for Department for Communities and Local Government
Volunteers needed	David Milliband	South Shields	Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
Volunteers needed	Ian Pearson	Dudley South	Minister of State for Science and Innovation
Volunteers needed	Jonathan Shaw	Chatham and Aylesford	Local MP to Kingsnorth and Minister at DEFRA (Minister for the South East)

MPs in marginal seats

Download this list of Labour MPs in marginal seats

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How to Lobby your MP

The most effective way to lobby your MP is to meet with them face-to-face. However, if you do not have time to do this, the next best thing is to write to them. A hand-written letter will get more attention than a typed one, and a letter in the post will be more effective than an email.

Write to or email your MP.

All MPs have the same address. Send your letter to:

MPs name
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA

If you only have time to email, you can use the Write to Them website, where you can enter your postcode and email directly from the website.

We’ve produced a template letter with some key points you could make. Your letter will be much more effective if you personalise it, so take a couple of minutes to explain why this issue is so important to you.

• Download template letter to your MP as an Open Office document.
• Download template letter to your MP as a Word document.

Meet your MP

Before the meeting

Get an invite: Phone or write to your MP’s office to ask for a urgent meeting, explaining what you want to discuss, the aim of the meeting and how long you will need. Don’t just turn up at your MP’s surgery time because you will only get a couple of minutes if you do (but as a last resort this is an option). Make sure you leave a name and contact number.

Do your homework: If you don’t know your MP, find out about their interests and background on the They Work for You website. Remember you have a home and university MP. See if they have signed EDM 1019 on climate and energy production.

Know your subject: Be well prepared — read the ‘Stop Kingsnorth’ campaign briefing and the Kingsnorth FAQs. Plan the key points that you want to get across and what actions you are going to ask your MP to take, like asking the Minister questions about Kingsnorth. Think about what their counter arguments might be, and how you can respond to them. Contact James in the P&P office for advice by phone (01865 245678) or email.

Be organised: If several of you are going together, have a pre-meeting to work out who will be doing what during the meeting so that everyone plays a part and you don’t end up in public disagreement! Roles could include introducing and thanking, note taking and follow up, main spokesperson — 3-4 people is a good number — you don’t need a huge gang.

During the meeting

Pitch it right: Try to fit what you say to your MP’s level of knowledge — remember that they are probably practised in looking like they know a lot about the subject, but you’ve probably read far more than them on the relevant issue. It often helps to use humour, and remember to stay polite! Be creative take a petition showing levels of student support or concern.

Take notes: It’s good to have a clear record of what they have said they would do. This will help you give feedback to others, and follow up the meeting. Send these to the P&P office as it helps plan future campaign actions and measure parliamentary support.

Ask the possible: Make sure you have a concrete action to ask your MP to take (they can ask a question in the Commons, sign EDM 1019, write to John Hutton, the minister involved). This enables MPs who support us to show they do so in a tangible way, and forces those who are equivocal to take a position.

Keep on track: Your meeting will be brief, so try to keep on track, and don’t let them change the subject (while remaining polite).

Round up: Finish the meeting by thanking them for their time, reminding them of key points and what they have agreed to do, and ask to be kept informed of any outcomes. Leave them any relevant materials.

After the meeting

Follow up: Send a brief thank you letter summing up key points and actions. Consider sending a press release to any local media.

Feedback: Let members of your group & the P&P office know how it went. Think of anything you will do differently next time. This feedback is essential in monitoring our campaigns and political strategy. Your action is also great to inspire other groups to do the same so get photos and send us your story. We will also share information on which MPs have been lobbied with other organisations to make sure that all the target MPs are lobbied by someone.

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Write to the Minister

John Hutton MP is the Secretary of State for DBERR and responsible for making the decision on whether to hold a public enquiry into Kingsnorth. It would be really effective if you and your group took the time to write letters directly to the Minister.

We’ve produced a template letter with suggested text to personalise and send to John Hutton.

Remember this is a template letter and a hand written letter in your own words would be much more effective than any email. Personalise them, make them creative and interesting. See what Aberystwyth sent Philip Green recently.

You could also send copies of your letter to the Minister to your local MPs to tell them about your correspondence with the Minister and ask for their further help.

Why not write a giant letter and get lots of students on campus to sign it? Then ask your local MP to take it to John Hutton. One group has even had the idea of getting a massive Easter egg with their message written on it!

• Download the template letter to John Hutton as an Open Office document.
• Download the template letter to John Hutton as a Word document.

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Take Direct Action

To get involved in or find out more about any of these actions, contact James in the P&P office.

Mass action & lobby of Parliament

1 April 2008: London P&P groups will be organising a mass action in Parliament Square. This will be followed by a lobby of Parliament.

E-On HQ next to Warwick University

1st May 2008: Warwick University happens to be next door to the headquarters of E.ON the company behind Kingsnorth. Google maps of E.ON HQ Find out if E.ON have a site near you.

Climate Camp, Kingsnorth Kent

4 -11 August 2008: The Camp for Climate Action will be held at the site of Kingsnorth in Kent. Why not start to form your affinity group today? Call the office for ideas, training and advice on 01865 245678.

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New coal and Kingsnorth in the news

• Green & Black RHETORIC is a sad fact of political life, and most voters are smart enough to know that grand promises made in the heat of a parliamentary debate or an election battle should be taken with a pinch of salt. Economist, 3 April 2008

• Coal power policy under attack from top scientists Britain’s leading scientists have told ministers that plans for a new generation of coal power stations pose an unacceptable climate risk, unless greater efforts are made to trap and store the carbon pollution they produce. Guardian, 3 April 2008

• Why are we going back to coal? This Governments antediluvian policy of backing a new coal-fired power station is absurd. Times, 3 April 2008

• Back to black: return to coal John Hutton, the Secretary of State for Business, will say that “clean coal” has a crucial role to play in filling Britain’s energy gap for the future. He will accuse the green lobby of “gesture politics” by opposing any coal-fired plants, putting energy supplies at risk and presenting a false “black and white” choice to the public over coal power. Independent, 10 March 2008

• Coal ‘key to UK’s energy supply’ BBC article on a speech by John Hutton setting out his plans to replace the existing coal station at Kingsnorth and arguing that coal-fired power stations will remain a “key source” of British energy. BBC, 10 March 2008

• Climate camp to target coal power station The Camp for Climate Action will be held from August 4-11 at the site of Kingsnorth in Kent, where German energy company E.ON is proposing to build the country’s first new coal-fired power station in 30 years. Guardian, 3 March 2008

• Prince Charles has come out(a bit) on coal saying: “Can we, hand on heart, say that we are really doing enough to improve energy efficiency? Can we possibly allow twenty years of business as usual before coal power generation becomes clean? Are we truly investing enough in renewable energy technologies?” 14 February 2008

• Mainstream US banks have launched carbon principles which includes an enhanced due diligence procedure for coal plants. Discussions have started about whether there are opportunities that flow from this in the City of London. Citi Group, 4 February 2008

• Go-ahead for first coal station for 20 years E.ON’s proposals for a cleaner coal power station were given approval last night but could face a public inquiry. The Times, 3 January 2008

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Further Resources

• Download the Stop Kingsnorth briefing.

• Download the FAQ on Kingsnorth.

• WDM’s new Stop Kingsnorth site to act as a hub for the campaign.

• The Camp for Climate Action

• Film about coal and the livelihoods it affects in the US. Burning the Future: Coal in America.

• Greenpeace campaign on Kingsnorth. Greenpeace briefing on Kingsnorth.

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