Viewpoint: Climate change affects us all and we must do something about it

At our recent council meeting we declared a ‘climate emergency’ in Tower Hamlets and committed to work towards being a ‘carbon neutral borough’ by 2025.

We were addressed by parents, but also by local schoolchildren, worried about the future.

In case you wonder why, and whether this is just some campaign that doesn’t really affect us, let me be clear it’s not just about icebergs and rising sea levels that may affect the whole world but won’t hit us in Tower Hamlets just yet.

It’s more urgent because locally our air quality, every day, exceeds safe standards, and it’s affecting people’s health.

Action means working across borough boundaries, and indeed national boundaries.

But it also needs local action. Our initiatives such as the Breathe Clean campaign compliment London-wide policies to reduce our environmental impact.

We need to step up our efforts and consider the legacy we will leave our children.