“We can’t leave getting involved to someone else”: Greenpeace volunteers meet their MPs

Surveys show that 89% of the UK want stronger action on climate and nature – but MPs say they aren’t actually hearing this from their constituents. The Climate Coalition Mass Lobby was about closing this gap – bringing people together to tell our MPs what we want them to be doing. 

In July, 5,000 people from across the UK came to Westminster to meet their MPs to ask them to take stronger action on climate and nature. As part of that, hundreds of Greenpeace volunteers met with over 80 MPs. 

For many, this was the first time they were meeting their MP. They went into their appointments filled with nerves and anticipation – but came away with pledges, interesting experiences, and plans to follow up and make sure their politicians do what they promised.  

We asked a few of them to share their experiences, and a few strong themes jumped out:

• Some MPs really do care about climate and nature.
• Some MPs have loads of background knowledge on these issues.
• MPs like to see evidence of their constituents calling for a specific action.

Here are their stories from the day:

Debbie and Mary – Met with Steve Race (Labour, Exeter)

Going into the meeting we felt nervous, as we hadn’t taken part in anything like this before, but excited to be part of this important action!  

The meeting felt surprisingly relaxed; as none of the other expected attendees arrived (it was just the two of us Greenpeacers and the MP!), we were able to raise all our planned topics, and present Greenpeace’s asks, and we were pleased that Steve agreed to act on some of our requests – including to sign the Make Polluters Pay pledge!

“I pledge to push for the biggest polluters to pay their fair share towards the costs of climate change – costs that my constituents, and frontline communities across the globe, are already paying”

As he left us, we felt elated that we’d made the meeting happen, after all the planning! For first time lobbyists, we felt we’d done a good job. Next up: holding him to his word! 

Clare and Mike – met with Scott Arthur (Labour, Edinburgh South West)

We got the train down from Edinburgh – MP Scott Arthur invited us to a private cafe in Parliament, where we discussed issues such as taxing the super-rich, private jet pollution, global livestock trade – and that 84% of his constituents would support local sustainable power generation instead.

We were encouraged by his positive & knowledgeable responses to most of the topics, and his awareness of the existential nature of climate change for humanity. Scott described his professional background in civil engineering and how the industry’s recommended minimum construction tolerances have significantly risen since the 1990s to withstand predicted increases in the forces of nature. Scott then took us on a personal tour of Westminster, including access to the public balconies during debates in both the Houses of Lords & Commons. 

Finally, we presented Scott with over 50 ‘Posters for the Planet’ from P4 pupils at Bonaly School in Edinburgh. Check out this video of Scott Arthur MP saying thank you for the posters! 

Back in Edinburgh, we wrote to thank Scott for his time, asking him to support the Global Plastics Treaty and the next proposals for the Climate and Nature Bill, and to press for the ratification of the Global Ocean Treaty into UK law. Scott agreed to a follow-up meeting in his Edinburgh constituency office on 19th Sept as part of the Local Lobby.

Alistair – met with Daniel Zeichner (Labour, Cambridge)

Myself and a friend wanted to magnify the voices from our town beyond those that could come to the Mass Lobby meeting in Parliament, so we ran a survey and pushed it out to a range of local groups. We put the responses into a pamphlet for our MP, which we brought along; the meeting went well, and though we didn’t come away with all our ‘asks’ accepted, they did agree to meet locally again! 

My main take away was how much MPs need visible public support/demand for strong climate policies to feel able to progress/implement them. Basically – we can’t leave ‘getting involved’ to someone else if we want action. Fortunately, while getting together with people for things like this might feel intimidating, it’s also energising and a great way to generate hope!

Stephanie – met with Joe Robertson (Conservative, Isle of Wight)

At the start of the Mass Lobby, there was a lot of uncertainty from some members; some thought “what difference could it make”. Six people went along, and we had three asks of our MP: The Planning and Infrastructure Bill, the Global Plastic Treaty, the Global Ocean Treaty, and the CAN Bill. 

Traveling to London from the Isle of Wight was an early start, but it gave us time to practise what we were going to present to our MP. There was a last-minute change of meeting details – we managed to meet in Westminster in the end, and he spent a good half hour with us.

Joe agreed to write to ministers attending the Global Plastics Treaty negotiations calling for a strong treaty with legally binding limits to plastic production. He also attended an event in Parliament advocating for this, and has agreed to keep working with us on this issue. It is good to have our local MP supporting us on this. We are intending to follow up with a second meeting!

Emyr – met with Helen Hayes MP (Labour, Dulwich)

Our constituency team in South London had been preparing for a couple of months for our Mass Lobby meeting by collecting signatures from street stalls and canvassing local businesses. We were in a lucky position as our MP has always been quite sound on climate issues, so we had very high hopes. In the end, the meeting went way better than expected, and it was great to meet other constituents who share our climate concerns.

We had some engaging discussions, particularly on the importance of lowering energy bills to match the reduced cost of renewables. We found out there had actually been a mini climate-coalition group within our constituency some years ago, and our MP pitched the idea of bringing this back. So our next steps will be trying to make this happen! We want to keep an ongoing dialogue with our MP about climate and nature throughout this parliamentary term and, hopefully, beyond.

Want to meet up with your MP to push them on climate and nature issues? 

The Climate Coalition is organising a Local Lobby Week on September 13th-20th – this will involve meeting your MP on home turf to lobby them on Greenpeace campaigns. The focus for this round will be on the Make Polluters Pay pledge. The more people who get involved, the more effective it will be, and Greenpeace provides lots of support to get you set up for your meetings.