Lorna Slater speaks at Cambo rally
Scottish Greens co-leader Lorna Slater has addressed the demonstration in Edinburgh against the proposed new oil field off the coast of Shetland.
The Lothians MSP joined activists outside the entrance to Edinburgh UK Government hub to protest against the Cambo oil field’s approval.
She raised burning waters in the Mexican peninsula, the scorching heat waves that have enveloped North America, and the flash floods in Edinburgh, as “symptomatic of a system that puts fossil fuel extraction and the maximisation of short-term profit above all else”.
Praising the direct action, Lorna Slater told demonstrators: “For the UK Tory government to issue new licences for additional for exploration and production of oil and gas in the North Sea shows how reckless and irresponsible Westminster is when it comes to environmental policy.
“They have no respect for their legal obligations to a treaty that they signed with the international community. No respect for international law. No respect for future generations. Three quarters of people in the UK support ending oil & gas extraction. The people get it. But the government still don’t. The stakes could not be higher. The climate emergency is the defining challenge of our age.“
Ms Slater challenged governments across the world to step up at the COP26 summit in Glasgow this year.
She said: “We are at a historic crossroads and I challenge governments all over the world to take up the responsibility. History books will be written about this era and the things that governments and corporations did or didn’t do. They won’t look favourably on politicians giving permission for even more drilling.”