Please email your County Councillors about the recent debate & vote on fossil fuels!

If you live in East Sussex then please take 2 minutes to email your County Councillor following the 9 May debate & vote on fossil fuels – see below for full details, including template emails for you to to send.

It’s important that they hear what you think about how they voted!

As was anticipated, Tory Councillors voted unanimously *against* fossil fuel divestment and *against* closing the ‘massive loopholes’ in the UK’s existing windfall tax on Big Oil.

In contrast, Green, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Independent Democrat Councillors all united to support the motion.

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Press release: Conservative County Councillors reject call to close ‘massive loopholes’ in windfall tax on Big Oil

Press release
Divest East Sussex [1]
9 May 2023
More info: 07596 483 272

PHOTO: https://tinyurl.com/ffdebate1 and https://tinyurl.com/ffdebate2 [CAPTION:  Lead petitioner Sarah Hazlehurst (with ‘Affordable Green Energy’ placard) and other campaigners outside County Hall in Lewes this morning, 9 May 2023. Photo: Steve Lewis

]

CONSERVATIVE COUNTY COUNCILLORS REJECT CALL TO CLOSE ‘MASSIVE LOOPHOLES’ IN WINDFALL TAX ON BIG OIL
Green, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Independent Democrat Councillors join forces to support fossil fuel divestment

Tuesday 9 May, County Hall, Lewes: Conservative Councillors on East Sussex County Council (ESCC) voted unanimously to oppose a motion [2] calling on the Council’s leader to write to the Prime Minister urging him to ‘close the massive loopholes in the existing windfall tax’ on Big Oil, following a debate at County Hall this morning. The motion – which was raised by Green Councillor Johnny Denis, and was supported by Green, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Independent Democrat Councillors [3] – also took the Council’s continued investment in fossil fuel companies to task, noting that ‘a public commitment …. to fully divest from these companies would send a powerful signal policymakers about the need to get serious about tackling the climate emergency.’



Today’s debate was triggered by 5,236 people from across East Sussex and Brighton & Hove signing a petition demanding that ESCC ‘stops investing in fossil fuels, and that it publicly supports a proper permanent windfall tax on Big Oil and a rapid transition to a system that provides affordable green energy for everyone.’ [4]

Press release: County Council forced to defend record on climate & cost of living crises

Press release
Divest East Sussex [1]
8 May 2023
More info: 07596 483 272

PHOTO: https://tinyurl.com/taxbigoildivest [CAPTION: Pension fund member and lead petitioner Sarah Hazlehurst outside County Hall, 21 March 2023. PHOTO: Natasa Leoni]

EAST SUSSEX COUNTY COUNCIL FORCED TO DEFEND RECORD ON CLIMATE & COST OF LIVING CRISES
Debate at County Hall tomorrow (Tuesday 9 May) triggered by local petition signed by over 5,200 members of the public

Tuesday 9 May, County Hall, Lewes, from 9am: East Sussex County Council (ESCC) will be forced to defend its record on the cost of living & climate crises, in a public debate on fossil fuel companies at County Hall in Lewes tomorrow (Tuesday 9 May).



The debate has been triggered by 5,236 people from across East Sussex and Brighton & Hove signing a petition demanding that ESCC ‘stops investing in fossil fuels, and that it publicly supports a proper permanent windfall tax on Big Oil and a rapid transition to a system that provides affordable green energy for everyone.’ [2]

Campaigners will be holding a rally outside County Hall from 9am, with the debate likely to begin not long after 10am.

Please email your County Councillor about next Tuesday’s (9 May) BIG DEBATE on fossil fuels!

If you’re based in East Sussex then please take 2 minutes to email your County Councillor and urge them to support fossil fuel divestment during next Tuesday’s (9 May) BIG DEBATE on fossil fuels at County Hall – see full instructions and template email below.

Tax Big Oil / Divest Now: We need YOU to attend The Big Debate at County Hall on 9 May!

Please join us at County Hall in Lewes (St Anne’s Crescent, BN7 1UE) on the morning of Tuesday 9 May for THE BIG DEBATE on East Sussex County Council (ESCC)’s failure to address the cost of living & climate crises.

Assemble outside County Hall for rally and photo-op at 9am, before going inside for the debate – which should start shortly after 10am.

Please email your local election candidates and urge them to sign the ABCD climate & nature pledge!

Local elections are due to take place on 4 May. In East Sussex these are taking place in Eastbourne, Lewes, Rother and Wealden. Local elections will also be taking place in Brighton & Hove.

If you live in any of these areas then then please contact your candidates to urge them to sign the South East Climate Alliance (SECA)’s ABCD climate & nature pledge. The pledge commits them, if elected, to press their council to: ‘Accelerate [climate] action’; ‘Boost partnerships for action’; ‘Communicate on climate and nature’ and support Divestment from fossil fuels (see here for full details).

Here’s a step-by-step guide to what you need to do (estimated time needed, approx. 5 mins):

Join Divest East Sussex & friends @ THE BIG ONE in London on 21 April

Extinction Rebelllion are attempting to mobilise 100,000 people to assemble outside Parliament on Friday 21 April, to demand a fair society and a citizen-led end to the fossil fuel era.

If you’d like to join Divest East Sussex & friends at this event then please contact divesteastsussex@gmail.com or 07596 483 272

More info: https://extinctionrebellion.uk/the-big-one

Please take 2 minutes to email Councillor Redstone about fossil fuel divestment!

Despite declaring a ‘climate emergency’ in October 2019, the East Sussex Pension Fund – the local government pension scheme covering East Sussex and Brighton & Hove – still has tens of millions of pounds of local people’s pensions invested in the giant fossil fuel (oil, coal & gas) companies that are driving the climate crisis.

Councillor Paul Redstone is one of the five ultimate decision-makers for the Fund. He is a Conservative Councillor representing the East Sussex County Council division of Norther Rother.

Rother District Council and Salehurst & Robertsbridge Parish Council have both recently passed motions calling on the Fund to make a public commitment to fully divest from fossil fuels. (Robertsbridge is the largest village in Northern Rother.)

Please take 2 minutes to email Cllr Redstone, drawing his attention to these votes and urging him to support divestment. Full details and sample text below.

Council leader to surround County Hall with security guards after local great-grandmother moots one-woman protest with sign

Press release
Divest East Sussex [1]
1 April 2023, 6am

PHOTO: https://tinyurl.com/glazierplan [CAPTION: What Cllr Glazier’s plans for County Hall could look like. Image credit: Family Arhive, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/&gt;, via Wikimedia Commons]


COUNCIL LEADER TO SURROUND COUNTY HALL WITH SECURITY GUARDS AFTER LOCAL GREAT-GRANDMOTHER MOOTS ONE-WOMAN PROTEST WITH SIGN



1 April 2023, Lewes: The leader of East Sussex County Council (ESCC), Cllr Keith Glazier, has revealed that he plans to completely encircle County Hall with five rings of security guards next month, in response to rumours that a local nonagenarian great-grandmother might hold a one-woman climate protest with a sign, outside the building.



Press release: Campaigners with giant oil barrel hand-in 5,236-strong petition at County Hall

Press release
Divest East Sussex [1]
21 March 2023
More info: 07596 483 272

PHOTO: https://tinyurl.com/taxbigoilpetition1 [CAPTION: Pension fund member and lead petitioner Sarah Hazlehurst outside County Hall prior to the hand-in, Tuesday 21 March 2023. PHOTO: Natasa Leoni]; https://tinyurl.com/divestpetition2 [CAPTION: Campaigners outside County Hall prior to the hand-in of the latest Divest East Sussex petition, Tuesday 21 March 2023. PHOTO: Natasa Leoni] Larger version of these images available on request.

CAMPAIGNERS WITH GIANT OIL BARREL HAND-IN 5,200-STRONG PETITION AT COUNTY HALL

5,236 people call on County Council to stop investing in fossil fuels and support a proper permanent windfall tax on Big Oil



21 March, Lewes: Local campaigners carrying a seven-foot by four-foot ‘oil barrel’ bearing the words ‘Tax Big Oil / Divest Now’ handed-in a 5,236-strong petition with these demands at County Hall in Lewes this morning. The petition, which has been signed by 5,236 people from across East Sussex and Brighton & Hove, demands that East Sussex County Council (ESCC) ‘stops investing in fossil fuels, and that it publicly supports a proper permanent windfall tax on Big Oil and a rapid transition to a system that provides affordable green energy for everyone.’ [2]