28th June 2022
The letter, which is signed by 30 health leaders representing members of the UK Health Alliance on Climate Change stressed the importance of the briefing to address the deep concern the climate and ecological crisis is having, and will continue to have on human health.
The full text of the letter and signatories can be viewed below.
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Dear Member of Parliament
We write to you as an alliance of health organisations deeply concerned about the impact the climate and ecological emergency is having, and will continue to have, on human health, and to strongly encourage you to attend the briefing led by Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, due to take place on Monday 11th July from 15:30-17:00.
As we understand it, Sir Patrick will be joined by Prof Gideon Henderson, the Chief Scientific Adviser for Defra, Prof Stephen Belcher, Met Office Chief Scientist and Prof Emily Shuckburgh, Director of Cambridge Zero. This will include updates on both the science of climate change and its solutions, and be followed by a Question and Answer session.
This briefing is being held following calls from 79 leading climate scientists and 29 senior health leaders from across the UK, who have warned that climate change is evolving at a rapid pace and will result in catastrophic harm to health that will be impossible to reverse without urgent action at scale and speed. The call from health leaders came following a request to intervene in the case of Angus Rose who went on hunger strike outside parliament.
Health professionals are extremely concerned about the risk that climate change poses to human health and to the additional burdens of these impacts on our stretched health service. Due to the pace of change, it is increasingly difficult to read, digest and appreciate the latest science. However, as elected representatives, politicians have a duty to act in the public interest with objectivity, and “to take decisions impartially, fairly and on merit using the best evidence and without discrimination”.
We welcome the government’s recent guidance for health professionals to act on the climate crisis in their professional practice through education, engagement, promoting and protecting public health. We call on members of parliament to strive for the same as is expected of our professions.
The briefing from the Chief Scientific Adviser will provide the latest scientific evidence on the climate crisis to enable members of parliament to take the decisive actions needed to protect human and planetary health, in much the same way as we witnessed the Chief Medical Officer share vital evidence-based information during the covid pandemic. We strongly urge you to attend so that you are equipped to make informed decisions for the benefit of your constituents, for public health and for our health service.
Yours,
Richard Smith, Chair UK Health Alliance on Climate Change
Fiona Godlee, Ambassador UK Health Alliance on Climate Change
Dame Parveen Kumar, Ambassador UK Health Alliance on Climate Change
Robin Stott, Ambassador UK Health Alliance on Climate Change
Dr Kamran Abbasi, Editor-In-Chief, The BMJ
Professor Claire Anderson, President, Royal Pharmaceutical Society
Professor Ed Bulmore, Treasurer, Academy of Medical Sciences
Ms Nicki Credland, Chair, British Association of Critical Care Nurses
Pat Cullen, General Secretary and Chief Executive, Royal College of Nursing
Professor Andrew Elder, President, Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
Professor Michael Griffin, President, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
Dr Richard Horton, Editor-In-Chief, The Lancet
Dr Adrian James, President, Royal College of Psychiatrists
Dr Shireen Kassam, Director, Plant-Based Health Professionals UK
Dr Camilla Kingdon, President, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
Dr Sandy Mather, Chief Executive Officer, Intensive Care Society
Mr Mike McKirdy, President, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow
Professor Gillian Mead, President, British and Irish Association of Stroke Physicians
Professor Hugh Montgomery, UCL Professor of Intensive Care Medicine; co-chair, Lancet Countdown
Dr Eddie Morris, President, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
Professor Neil Mortensen, President, Royal College of Surgeons of England
Dr Mike Nathanson, President, Association of Anaesthetists
Lizzie O’Brien, co-chair of the Students for Global Health Climate and Health group
Dr Latifa Patel, Representative Body Chair, British Medical Association
Professor Maggie Rae, President, Faculty of Public Health
Professor Gillian Tierney, President-elect, Association of Surgeons of Great Britain & Ireland
Professor Andrew Veitch, President, British Society of Gastroenterology
Dr Paul Walker, Chair, British Thoracic Society
Professor Mike Wang, Chair, Association of Clinical Psychologists UK
Dr Stephen Webb, President, Intensive Care Society