Protesters send climate change letter to MP Victoria Atkins

Holly Pavey, 12, is a student at QEGS and is passionate about encouraging the Government to act now on climate change - before it is too late.

Last Friday (May 24) Holly was joined by fellow protestors - including pupils and adults - in the Market Place for the second monthly protest since April.

Holly was inspired after hearing about Swedish schoolgirl Greta Thunberg, who has been dubbed a ‘climate change warrior’.

Greta staged her first school strike for the climate in front of the Swedish Parliament in August 2018.

Speaking to the News last month, Holly said: “I’d heard about Greta Thunberg and that she’s outside the Swedish Parliament campaigning about climate change.

“And I thought that because it is such a big crisis that everyone needs to act.

“I thought this was the best way I could do it.

“I will be continuing with the monthly protests asking both local and national Governments to take immediate action to prevent runaway climate change.”

As reported by the BBC, in a bid to limit ocean pollution, the UK government will introduce new controls on single use plastic items next year.

The measures cover plastic straws, plastic drinks stirrers and plastic cotton buds in England from April 2020.

Only plastic drinks stirrers will be totally banned from sale.

The Horncastle News asked Holly for her thoughts on the latest move to tackle pollution.

Holly said: “I think that it is a good idea to limit the use of plastic straws, cotton buds and stirrers.

“However, I don’t believe that doing this will have much of an affect on reversing the problems with climate change.”

Holly and her fellow strikers have taken their campaigning one step further recently - by sending a letter to MP for Horncastle and Louth, Victoria Atkins.

The letter reads: “Dear Ms Atkins, my school friends and I are very concerned about the climate crisis.

“Even though Parliament recently declared a climate emergency, we are extremely worried that nothing has happened since, and because of this we are very keen to know what the Government’s plans are to safeguard our future.

“I feel the best way that you could help the young people of Louth and Horncastle to understand the situation would be to give you the chance to tell us what the Government has planned to prevent climate change.

“I would therefore like to invite you to an event where you can speak to an audience of local young people face to face.

“This would be a way for us to learn and for us to ask questions about what is happening.

“If you would be happy to do this, I could arrange a date, time and venue that you could attend whenever you are available. Please agree to this request and speak to us as soon as possible.”

MP Victoria Atkins has now responded to the letter.

In a statement, Ms Atkins said: “I am really pleased that students in Louth and Horncastle care about climate change.

“The Government agrees with them that it is extremely important.

“From leading the G20 in cutting carbon emissions to planting millions of trees in a Great Northern Forest, stretching from Liverpool to Hull, we are acting now to leave the planet in a better state for future generations.

“Here on the Wolds, fens, marshes and coastline of Lincolnshire, it is especially important that we work to protect our countryside and varied landscapes from the impact of climate change and I am pleased that Holly and other students recognise this.

“I look forward to meeting Holly to discuss in more detail our policies to care for our environment.”