Climate Change, Nuclear Power and Democracy
Resonance | 11.11.2009 15:46 | Ecology | Energy Crisis | Social Struggles
The governments proposals to bypass public scrutiny to implement a new generation of Nuclear power plants raises important questions for the climate change movement.
Monday saw Ed Milliband make public plans to overhaul the UK energy system. Whilst the plan includes an overhaul of renewables and coal fired power perhaps the most controversial aspect of this overhaul is the emphasis being placed on nuclear energy generation. A new generation of 10 nuclear plants has been proposed which could provide up to 40% of the UK’s energy by 2025. This will be “the most ambitious fleet of new nuclear reactors in Europe” according to the Guardian. This overhaul, according to Labour, has been designed to address the twin problems of climate change and energy security.
There are two interesting aspects to this development, one specific to nuclear energy production and the second, a broader point with regards to capitalist regulation.
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There are two interesting aspects to this development, one specific to nuclear energy production and the second, a broader point with regards to capitalist regulation.
* * * For the rest of the article please check
http://res0nance.wordpress.com/ * * *
Resonance
Homepage:
http://res0nance.wordpress.com/
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National anti-nuclear power campaign strategy weekend, London - 21-22 Nov 2009
11.11.2009 16:27
Are you planning to win?
Time to get organised to stop a new generation of nuclear power stations being built.
Saturday 21 November (11am) to Sunday 22 November (4pm), central London (please get in touch for venue details)
The weekend will be a space for grassroots campaigners to network, share ideas and information and make plans to win.
Whatever your campaigning tools are, wherever you are from, whether you are working with an existing group or not, this weekend is for everybody. The more of us who can make it the better plans we can make.
By developing skills and confidence in creating and implementing campaign and action plans we can identify when and where our interventions can be most successful.
Activist training network Seeds for Change will facilitate the weekend and share skills for winning through campaign and action planning.
Come along, network and take away ideas and tools for winning to share with your local community and campaigning networks.
Costs: These will be kept as low as possible. Those able to will be asked to contribute towards costs, but don't let being skint stop you from coming :) . Crash space is available. If you need a bed, please get in touch ASAP and we'll see what we can do.
To book your place and get more details, contact:
nonewnuclear [at] aktivix.org
or ring 01524 383 012 and leave a message.
In collaboration with the Nuclear People Power network
Twitter: @NukePeoplePower
Nuclear People Power network
e-mail:
vd2012-npp [at] yahoo.co.uk
Homepage:
http://stopnuclearpower.blogspot.com
Citizen-led democracy for environmental policy
11.11.2009 19:23
Editor wrote:
"The new planning process is already controversial and will become more
so once it swings into full operation next year. Decisions will be taken
quickly and once made cannot be overturned by ministers (a point the
Conservatives intend to change). There are promises of consultation, but
no right of veto for local people on big projects."
I&R ~ GB replies:
Not only is there NO right of veto for local people, there is no right
of veto by the electorate. The British people have no democratic means
to block a bad law or government policy.
We give away our vote to a party and candidate once every five years and
after that we have nothing to say about what the government does. Sure,
after five or so years we can "throw the blighters out" but it is
likely that in many policy areas the new lot will follow very similar
lines.
If We The People took for ourselves the right to referendum, then we
could veto unwanted policy about specific public issues. This type of
partial direct democracy has operated for many years in Italy,
Switzerland and more recently in all Lands of Germany. A reasonably
large number of voter-endorsements must be collected in order to trigger
this procedure.
Generations to come will be affected by a decision to massively build
nuclear power stations. The public must be informed about previous
nuclear disasters at Calder Hall, Harrisburg, Chernobyl and elsewhere,
and about the technical and environmental problems which for new
installations remain unsolved. It should be possible to call a
referendum on this and for instance on new laws which give greater
powers to central government.
More about citizen-led democracy may be found via
I&R ~GB Michael
e-mail:
info@iniref.org
Homepage:
http://www.iniref.org/