At Greenpeace UK, we recognise that diversity is not just a metric; it’s how we win the fight for climate justice. To effectively tackle the climate crisis, our team must reflect the ethnic and racial diversity of London – the city where we are rooted.

We are not just changing who we are; we are changing how we win.
In 2025, we set a bold ambition: by 2030, at least 38.3% of our staff will identify as People of Colour (PoC), aligning us with the diversity of the London workforce.

Where we stand in 2026

Our overall representation of People of Colour has grown to 26%, up from the 2025 baseline 23.4%. This is a positive move towards our 38.3% target, one that we are committed to making progress on.  

The table below shows our 2026 representation across the organisation compared to our 2025 baseline and our ultimate 2030 goals. Collected in March – exactly one year after setting our targets – these figures will be updated and published annually every spring to maintain full transparency. 

* These are umbrella terms defined by the 2021 Census and ONS Labour Force Survey. We acknowledge that these terms may not resonate with everyone. We have chosen these datasets because they provide a framework of numerical accuracy and will help us track our progress meaningfully.

Turning data into action

The positive shifts in our representation in the past 12 months demonstrate that change is possible when it is led from the heart of the organisation and woven into the fabric of our mission. We are determined to keep building on this momentum.

The non-disclosure data – representing colleagues who have chosen not to disclose their ethnicity – remains at 4% overall. We are committed to fostering a culture of psychological safety where everyone feels comfortable sharing their identity, knowing it will be valued and their data will enable GPUK to be accountable in the fight for climate justice.

We will continue to review and publish these figures annually. Transparency is the first step toward the inclusive and equitable Greenpeace UK that our mission demands.

The post Shifting power within Greenpeace UK: where we stand on our 2030 representation targets appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

“It’s disgraceful that four British citizens could be sentenced as ‘terrorists’ when they haven’t been charged or convicted of a terror offence. Laws and sentencing guidelines already exist to punish these offences – labelling them as terrorists is disproportionate and cynical.

“There’s a long tradition of brave people damaging property to prevent injustice and the killing of civilians – from the US nuclear warheads at Greenham Common to the fences that shut people out of the countryside near their homes. Their bravery has made us all safer and freer. The British justice system is respected the world over, but for how much longer?”

The post Statement on ‘terrorist’ sentencing of Palestine Action activists appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

New figures quietly released by the UK government reveal the astronomical scale of taxpayer support enjoyed by the fossil fuel industry – totaling £13.3 billion in tax breaks over a seven-year period. This figure excludes tax reliefs paid to oil companies for decommissioning, which, if included, would take the total over £20 billion. 

Greenpeace calculates this £13-billion handout could have fully funded a secure transition for North Sea oil and gas workers for seven years – which would include job creation in wind manufacturing, investment in green infrastructure and a dedicated training fund for displaced oil and gas workers. 

Instead, as the basin’s natural reserves decline, the government is failing to invest sufficiently in the jobs, training and infrastructure for the workforce to fairly transition to the clean energy sector. 

Fuelling profits, stranding workers

The findings have triggered condemnation from campaigners who point out that public money is being gifted to an industry that is already drowning in cash. 

Following the outbreak of the war in Iran, oil majors have reaped an eye-watering geopolitical windfall. In a single four-week window this spring, the combined market value of Shell, TotalEnergies, BP, Equinor, and Harbour Energy surged by £73.5 billion. 

In the 2025/26 financial year alone, oil and gas firms were handed £1.9 billion in tax breaks. Coincidentally, this is the same amount demanded last year by major trade unions to annually fund the Emergency Just Transition package – a scheme designed to create permanent, unionised renewable energy jobs for displaced fossil fuel workers. 

The narrative that drilling in the North Sea protects British jobs or national energy security has been debunked. The North Sea is a rapidly maturing basin, with around 90% of reserves “already drained dry”. Despite the Conservative government handing out hundreds of drilling licenses, UK oil and gas employment has halved over the past decade – from 441,000 in 2013 to just 213,000 in 2023. 

Furthermore, the hundreds of North Sea oil and gas licenses granted by the Conservatives over 14 years have yielded just 36 days of extra gas.

What else could the £13.3 billion have bought?

This heavy subsidisation of a declining sector stands in stark contrast to the explosive growth of the Net Zero sector. Recent research from CBI Economics shows that the green economy is vastly outstripping the wider economy on jobs, wages and growth – delivering economic benefits to the whole of the UK. 

Greenpeace analysis reveals how this squandered £13.3 billion could have been redirected to lower household energy bills, create high-quality green jobs, and decarbonise public infrastructure:

Rudy Schulkind, political campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: 

“It is a moral and political failure that the UK government is still pouring billions into tax breaks for climate-wrecking fossil fuel giants while ordinary households struggle with soaring bills and growing climate chaos. 

“We’re being forced to subsidise an industry already reaping obscene profits at the expense of our own lives and livelihoods. The government must find the courage to scrap these handouts for the oil and gas giants driving this crisis and start funding a fair, net-zero future for us all.”

Connor Watt, Worker Organiser Representative from Platform said: 

“As this new analysis shows, this government could have been supporting oil and gas workers, but instead they have chosen to give tax breaks to profit-hungry oil and gas firms when ordinary people are struggling to pay their bills and workers are being hung out to dry.

“Workers have set out clearly what they need: investment that creates permanent, unionised renewable energy jobs in public and community-owned wind manufacturing, alongside job-creating investment in ports, and genuine support for oil and gas workers to transition into the industries of the future. It’s high time the government stood up to giant corporations and delivered for the working people of the UK.” 

ENDS

Notes to Editors

• While some of the tax reliefs detailed in this analysis are accessible to multiple industries, Greenpeace argues that subsidising fossil fuel extraction – a sector generating historic profits while driving climate breakdown – undermines the UK’s own climate goals, representing a regressive use of taxpayer funds during a cost of living crisis. 
• The £13.3 billion figure includes two types of producer relief: ring-fence first-year capital allowances for plant and machinery, and allowances against the supplementary charge (the Investment Allowance, the Cluster Area Allowance and the Onshore Allowance). These tax breaks are designed to incentivise oil and gas projects and encourage investment by permitting oil companies to deduct particular types of spending and investment from their tax bill.
• The analysis has excluded decommissioning tax relief from the £13.3bn figure, as Greenpeace UK is not calling for those reliefs to be scrapped.
• The government has stated that its COFFIS commitments include “Developing a national phase-out strategy for fossil fuel incentives and support measures within a clear timeline, by COP31.”

Methodology & References

The full methodology used for Greenpeace UK’s analysis is available upon request. Key data sources include:

1. Clean Power: Wind turbine figures utilise Arup’s capital cost index for DESNZ (July 2025).
2. Home insulation – Insulation metrics utilise the National Audit Office’s (NAO) assessment of ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme (October 2025). 
3. NHS hospitals – Derived from the NHS Digital ERIC site dataset and typical solar capacity per site is taken from Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) case studies. (SOURCE Eddisons Education, Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS), accessed May 2026; corroborated by Hookway and conceptenergy.org. Salix Finance PSDS school case cards). 
4. Education – Based on the DfE Schools, pupils and their characteristics data and the PSDS evidence base. 
5. North Sea workers – Just Transition figures utilise the joint union coalition demand published May 2025. 
6. Bill Support – Warm Home Discount metrics use the official government statutory updates. 

The post £13.3bn tax breaks for oil and gas firms could have funded 7 years of support for North Sea workers – Greenpeace appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

Over the past few weeks, the Labour government has introduced bold new measures to tax polluters, landmark energy legislation and ambitious new climate targets.

The government is starting to align its actions with the scale of the climate crisis. It’s a welcome recognition that people want to see a bold progressive vision to tackle it. 

Here is why the latest announcements are a win for both people and the planet.

Reeves clamps down on oil and gas profiteering

Fossil fuel profits are surging on the back of a cost of living and climate crisis – the top 100 oil companies are set to make $234 billion additional profits by the end of the year if oil prices average $100 a barrel – and this is possibly underestimated.

Last month, Chancellor Rachel Reeves pledged to close the loopholes that let oil and gas giants dodge tax on their lucrative oil trading profits. The money raised will go straight into cost-of-living support for people across the UK.

By choosing to side with cash-strapped households over polluting profiteers, the Chancellor signaled a massive shift in Treasury priorities. It is a clear sign that the government has heard our demands – fossil fuel giants like Shell should be made to pay for the damage they have created, rather than leaving ordinary households at the mercy of soaring energy bills and escalating climate chaos.   

Many of these oil and gas giants have spent years avoiding paying their fair share of tax. Reeves’ speech made it clear that the government understands the urgent need for material support for people and businesses, and is ready to take steps to make these companies pay up to fund vital cost-of-living support.

None of this happened by accident

These moves by the Labour government are the result of years of relentless pressure from campaigners, communities, and voters who refused to accept corporate greed as the status quo.

However, the true test lies ahead. We know that ambitious policies can be watered down by industry lobbying, so our job now is to ensure the government closes every tax loophole and makes these commitments robust. 

The campaign doesn’t stop here. We want the government to introduce much more ambitious legislation to tax oil and gas giants to pay for climate action. 

With these policies, the Energy Secretary is clearly serious about delivering a clean energy system for the future, which will lower our energy bills and free us from polluting, expensive fossil fuels. The momentum is with us, and our job now is to hold the government to this course and turn these promises into reality. 

Carbon Budget 7

Possibly the biggest long-term win is the government’s commitment to Carbon Budget 7. The UK's legally binding cap on greenhouse gas emissions set under the Climate Change Act 2008.Read more. It sets the UK’s emissions-cutting targets for 2038-2042 – a crucial step towards our legal goal of net zero by 2050. Sticking to it secures the UK’s place among the world’s climate leaders, in step with the rest of Europe.

Now the government must map out how we’ll hit our targets – and the recent energy price spikes only strengthen the case. Reaching net zero will cost the economy less than a single one of these repeated, war-fuelled oil and gas price shocks, and could shield us from the next. It also offers future generations the hope of a fairer, cleaner, more secure world powered by renewables.

This commitment proves that the UK hasn’t abandoned its net zero targets to join the ranks of Trump’s America. Instead, it offers genuine hope for a fairer, cleaner, and more secure world powered by renewables.

Help us shape what happens next

The climate movement is forcing the government to shift. The momentum is again on our side. 

Now, it’s up to us all to hold them to the promises they’ve made and ensure words translate into real, systemic change.

Will you ask you MP to speak out in support of cleaner air, lower bills and a better future for us all?

Write to your MP

The post The UK government is stepping up climate action, and we’re helping to make it happen appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

An underwater robot has set a new record for the world’s deepest protest after revealing a banner saying ‘LISTEN TO THE SCIENCE!’ 1.4 miles (2.3 km) below the surface. The feat was achieved during a Greenpeace scientific survey of vulnerable and unexplored deep-sea ecosystems between Iceland and Svalbard.

The banner was submerged to 2,315 metres below sea level by the expedition’s remotely operated vehicle ‘ROV Holly’ and held up in front of a hydrothermal vent field known as ‘Loki’s Castle’, located along the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge.

The Arctic is one of the most rapidly changing regions on Earth due to climate change, and faces a direct threat from the prospect of deep-sea mining. Greenpeace is warning that these unique ‘biodiversity hotspots’ are at risk of irreversible disruption.

Dr. Sandra Schöttner, chief scientist for the Deep Arctic Expedition at Greenpeace International, said: “This marks the deepest banner protest in history, to speak for ecosystems that have no voice of their own. World leaders have already promised to protect 30 percent of the oceans, now they must listen to the science and actually do it. We cannot meet our global goals if we also allow industrial exploitation of unexplored and vulnerable ecosystems in the deep sea. It is high time that leaders keep their promises and give the oceans a chance to recover.”

Loki’s Castle is a unique volcanic ecosystem containing active chimneys that spew out fluid from deep within the ocean crust at temperatures of up to 320°C. Scientists describe it as a “cradle” of complex life that could hold the key to how life on Earth once started. Our own distant ancestors may have looked just like the microbes living on the geological structures in Loki’s Castle.

“By safeguarding these deep-sea ecosystems within a global network of ocean sanctuaries and establishing a moratorium on deep sea mining, we can create a resilient safety net for marine life, and protect the health of our global oceans for generations to come”, Dr. Sandra Schöttner added.

Greenpeace’s Deep Arctic Expedition brings together world-leading scientists to explore Arctic seamounts and hydrothermal vent fields – all while ‘divestreaming’ the science from the Arctic seabed on YouTube. [1] The area was opened for deep sea mining by the Norwegian government in 2024, but the plans were halted last year after protests from environmental organisations, fishermen, scientists and the green opposition parties in Norway.[2] 

Deep sea mining would, according to many scientists, cause irreversible damage to vulnerable deep-sea ecosystems, including the destruction of habitats, and possibly the extinction of some species.

Greenpeace is calling on world leaders to honour global climate targets, implement the UN Ocean Treaty to protect 30% of the global ocean by 2030, and establish an immediate moratorium on deep-sea mining.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

Photos and videos of the protest are available here. 

A full selection of the photos, video and maps from Greenpeace’s Arctic Deep expedition are in the Greenpeace Media Library 

Join the Arctic expedition WhatsApp channel for updates and divestream notifications. Watch the divestreams on YouTube

Read more about the expedition here 

Notes:

[1] Greenpeace International, Greenpeace Germany and Greenpeace Nordic are leading the Deep Arctic Expedition from 8 May–5 June 2026.

[2] Deep-sea mining: Norway halts controversial practice until 2029 (Euronews) 

Contact:

• Onboard: Daniel Bengtsson, Communications Lead Onboard, Greenpeace Nordic, +46 70 300 9510 (Whatsapp/Signal), daniel.bengtsson@greenpeace.org
• In the UK: kai.tabacek@greenpeace.org / +44 7970 030 019

The post Greenpeace underwater robot sets record for the world’s deepest protest from Arctic seabed appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

Photos and video here

Forty-one people including Greenpeace UK’s Campaigns Director have been arrested today following a peaceful blockade that shut down the UK headquarters of global pesticide company Syngenta in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire [1]. 

Greenpeace has accused Syngenta of driving wildlife decline and threatening UK food security by making and selling pesticides that poison British wildlife.

New Greenpeace analysis of official data [2], reveals today that just one teaspoon of the Syngenta-made pesticide, Hallmark, is enough to kill 13 million bees.

Its active ingredient, Lambda-cyhalothrin, also made and sold by Syngenta, is by far the most-used insecticide on arable land in the UK with 6.9 tonnes of it applied to over 1 million hectares in 2024 [3]. That’s an area more than six times the size of London.

Greenpeace UK Co-Executive Director, Will McCallum, said:
“Today’s arrests are a huge overreaction by police. The damage Syngenta is doing to wildlife and our countryside cannot be overstated, which is why we’re here to confront them. They’re making and selling pesticides that devastate our wildlife, make UK farmers dependent on their products, and put our whole food system at risk – yet they’re getting away scot free.

“If only the Government channelled the same passion it shows for quashing peaceful protest into ending the silent crisis unfolding in our countryside. We need to drastically cut chemicals on our land and in our waterways, and farmers need funding to enable them to do it. This is crucial so that nature – the very foundations of our food system – can recover.”

As well as being deadly to bees, lambda cyhalothrin is classified as a Highly Hazardous Pesticide, very toxic to aquatic life, and a forever chemical (PFAS) which means it is highly persistent in the soil and can accumulate in the food chain. Insecticides like this also starve birds and mammals like hedgehogs by depriving them of their food source.

The action follows Greenpeace UK’s report Our poisoned land, published last week, which warned that intensive pesticide and fertiliser use is pushing UK wildlife and ecosystems to the brink. The report revealed that commonly eaten British fruit and veg are routinely sprayed with over 100 pesticides before reaching the plate. 

ENDS

Contact: press.uk@greenpeace.org / 020 7865 8255

Notes to editors

Previous release from 6am: Activists blockade pesticide giant making bee-killing chemical used on UK fields – Greenpeace UK 

The UK government’s international commitment is to halve pesticide risks and excess nutrients by 2030 and yet so far its own action plan only commits to a 10% reduction for pesticide use. 

Greenpeace is calling for:

• a 50% reduction in pesticide and fertiliser use by 2030
• an 80% reduction by 2040
• funding and support for farmers to reduce reliance on chemical inputs
• tighter restrictions on pesticide use in public spaces and homes

[1] Activists transformed a roundabout outside the front entrance of Syngenta’s HQ into a giant hazard symbol carrying the message “Syngenta poisons nature” with an arrow pointing directly at the building. 

Thirty activists locked onto fifteen blue pesticide barrels, blocking all three gates to the site, preventing cars and HGVs from entering or leaving. Eight of the barrels were topped with ultra-realistic sculptures of wildlife threatened by pesticides including a bee, butterfly, bird, fish, frog and hedgehog. The barrels were painted with Syngenta’s logo, subverted to show the skeleton of a leaf, rather than a healthy green one. 

[2] Source: Pesticide Properties DataBase (PPDB), University of Hertfordshire. 

[3] Source: FERA Report 320 – Arable Crops in the UK, 2024. Greenpeace analysis found Lambda-cyhalothrin was used during the growing process of common British produce including potatoes, peas, carrots, onions, leeks and strawberries.

Of the 41 products authorised for use in the UK containing lambda-cyhalothrin, 8 are marketed by Syngenta. They are the only one of the ‘Big Four’ agrochemical companies (Syngenta, Bayer, BASF, Corteva) authorised to sell it in the UK. Syngenta’s global profits were $4.4 billion last year.

Pesticide giants like Syngenta have locked farmers into a reliance on expensive chemical inputs including pesticides and fertilisers. This threatens our food security because as well as damaging soils and poisoning the pollinators that food production depends on, farmers and our food system are more vulnerable to rising costs caused by global instability – as we’ve seen recently with fertiliser price rises.

The post 41 arrested for confronting pesticide giant making bee-killing chemicals appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

Photos and video here – updated throughout the day

Greenpeace activists have today blockaded the UK headquarters of global pesticide company, Syngenta, in Huddersfield, accusing the pesticide giant of driving wildlife decline and threatening our future food security.

Activists have transformed a roundabout outside the front entrance of Syngenta’s HQ into a giant hazard symbol carrying the message “Syngenta poisons nature” with an arrow pointing directly at the building. 

Thirty activists are currently locked onto fifteen blue pesticide barrels, blocking all three gates to the site, preventing cars and HGVs from entering or leaving. Eight of the barrels are topped with ultra-realistic sculptures of wildlife threatened by pesticides including a bee, butterfly, bird, fish, frog and hedgehog. The barrels are also painted with Syngenta’s logo, which has been subverted to show the skeleton of a leaf, rather than a healthy green one. 

The action comes on World Bee Day and alongside new Greenpeace analysis of official data [1] which reveals just one teaspoon of the Syngenta-made pesticide, Hallmark, whose active ingredient is lambda-cyhalothrin, is enough to kill 13 million bees. 

Lambda-cyhalothrin, processed here in Huddersfield by Syngenta, is a powerful insecticide widely used in UK farming. As well as being deadly to bees, it’s classified as a Highly Hazardous Pesticide, very toxic to aquatic life, and a forever chemical (PFAS) which means it is highly persistent in the soil and can accumulate in the food chain. Insecticides like this also starve birds and mammals like hedgehogs by depriving them of their food source. 

Greenpeace investigators found that:

• Lambda-cyhalothrin is by far the most-used insecticide on arable land in the UK
• 6.9 tonnes of lambda-cyhalothrin was applied to over 1 million hectares of British arable crops in 2024 [2] – an area more than 6 times the size of London
• Of the 41 products authorised for use in the UK containing lambda-cyhalothrin, 8 are marketed by Syngenta. They are the only one of the ‘Big Four’ agrochemical companies (Syngenta, Bayer, BASF, Corteva) authorised to sell it in the UK. 

The action follows Greenpeace UK’s report Our poisoned land, published last week, which warned that intensive pesticide and fertiliser use is pushing UK wildlife and ecosystems to the brink. The report revealed that commonly eaten British fruit and veg are routinely sprayed with over 100 pesticides before reaching the plate. 

Greenpeace analysis found Lambda-cyhalothrin was used during the growing process of common British produce including potatoes, peas, carrots, onions, leeks and strawberries.

Pesticide giants like Syngenta have locked farmers into a reliance on expensive chemical inputs including pesticides and fertilisers. This threatens our food security because as well as damaging soils and poisoning the pollinators that food production depends on, farmers and our food system are more vulnerable to rising costs caused by global instability – as we’ve seen recently with fertiliser price rises.

Nina Schrank, Greenpeace UK campaigner, said:
“Our countryside and the wildlife we love is being poisoned by pesticides made and sold by Syngenta. Just one teaspoon of the Syngenta-made pesticide, Hallmark, is enough to kill 13 million bees. 

“And pesticide damage doesn’t stop at the edge of a field. These chemicals are wiping out insects, polluting rivers and causing the very foundations of our food system to crumble. 

“Meanwhile, Syngenta is making billions while leaving many farmers dependent on their harmful products. That’s why we’re here today: to drag Syngenta out of the shadows and shine a light on the devastation their products are causing to wildlife as well as the threat they pose to our entire food and farming system.

“We need the government to step in, set tighter limits on pesticide use and support farmers to produce healthy food in a nature-friendly way. ”  

The UK’s Pesticides National Action Plan aims to reduce pesticide load indicators by 10% from 2018 levels by 2030. This is despite the UK government’s international commitment to halve pesticide risks and excess nutrients by the same date.

Greenpeace is calling for:

• a 50% reduction in pesticide and fertiliser use by 2030
• an 80% reduction by 2040
• funding and support for farmers to reduce reliance on chemical inputs
• tighter restrictions on pesticide use in public spaces and homes

ENDS

Contact: press.uk@greenpeace.org / 020 7865 8255

Notes to editors

[1] Source: Pesticide Properties DataBase (PPDB), University of Hertfordshire  
[2] Source: FERA Report 320 – Arable Crops in the UK, 2024 
[3] Syngenta’s global profits were $4.4 billion last year.

The post Activists blockade pesticide giant making bee-killing chemical used on UK fields appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

The findings are published today in Greenpeace UK’s new report, Our Poisoned Land, which warns that intensive pesticide and fertiliser use is not only posing serious risks to human health, it’s also pushing British wildlife and our natural environment to the brink. Since 1966, Britain has lost over 19 million breeding birds, and more than half of UK butterfly species are now missing from areas they were found in the 1970s.

Greenpeace investigators examined FERA Pesticide Usage Survey data covering vegetables commonly eaten as part of a traditional Sunday roast. These include onions, leeks, carrots, parsnips, potatoes, peas, swede and turnips – alongside strawberries as a classic British dessert.

The analysis found:

• 102 unique pesticides used across seven food categories

1. Onions and leeks are treated with 43 different pesticides
2. Strawberries are treated with 42
3. Carrots and parsnips are treated with 40
4. Field potatoes are treated with 31
5. Peas are treated with 29
6. Swede and turnips are treated with 20
7. Stored potatoes are treated with 5

Seven of the 102 pesticides are already banned in the EU due to their links to cancer and endocrine disruption in humans, as well as posing high risk to the health of bees, birds, mammals and aquatic ecosystems. 

Of the nine most commonly used pesticides, eight are classified as Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs) – meaning they are toxic to humans, wildlife, or both and three are classified as forever chemicals (PFAS) [2].
Many are linked to: 

• Harm to bees and other pollinators 
• Severe damage to aquatic ecosystems
• Persistence in the environment and accumulation in the food chain
• Cancer and endocrine disruption in humans

As well as revealing the sheer variety of pesticides used in UK farming, the analysis also highlights the number of times these British staples are dosed across the growing season. All crops received multiple pesticide applications with many sprayed dozens of times. 

The repeated exposure is having consequences far beyond farmland – affecting insects, birds, mammals, rivers and soil health across the countryside. 

Nina Schrank, Senior Campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said:

“A Sunday roast and strawberries might feel like one of the most natural and traditionally British meals imaginable but behind the scenes they’re produced using an astonishing cocktail of pesticides.

“Our countryside is being drenched in pesticides, with devastating consequences for bees, birds, butterflies, rivers and the soil. Fields that once hummed with wildlife are falling silent while agrochemical giants rake in enormous profits and farmers are trapped in a costly cycle of chemical dependency. That doesn’t strengthen food security – it makes it more fragile. 

“Farmers are also under huge pressure from rising costs, climate shocks and volatile markets but some are already showing there’s another way. They’re reducing pesticide use and producing food alongside helping wildlife. If the government is serious about restoring nature and ensuring food security, it must properly back farmers and commit to halving pesticide use by 2030.”

Currently, the UK government’s Pesticides National Action Plan targets just a 10% reduction by 2030.

ENDS

Notes to Editors: 

[1] Full data analysis and methodology available on request. 

• Active ingredients recorded on UK-grown vegetables and fruit sourced from FERA Pesticide Usage Survey data.

[2] HHP status cross-referenced against the PAN International List of Highly Hazardous Pesticides (December 2024) and the Pesticide Properties DataBase (PPDB), University of Hertfordshire. PFAS status – Pesticide Properties DataBase (PPDB), Agriculture & Environment Research Unit (AERU), University of Hertfordshire. 

Greenpeace is calling for:

• a 50% reduction in pesticide and fertiliser use by 2030
• an 80% reduction by 2040
• funding and support for farmers to reduce reliance on chemical inputs
• tighter restrictions on pesticide use in public spaces and homes

The post Traditional roast dinner sprayed with cocktail of over 100 pesticides appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

Last week, the government finally listened to our calls for change. They announced a new policy to start delinking gas and electricity prices.

This is a massive win for everyone who uses electricity. It means that when fossil fuel prices spike, like we’re seeing right now with the conflict in Iran, your electricity bills won’t automatically skyrocket along with them. We’ve started to break the chains that bind our wallets to global gas markets.

How we did it: People power vs. Big Gas

This victory was built by tens of thousands of us who refused to accept the Great Gas Rip Off.

While energy executives have been making huge sums and profiting off wars, we have been taking action together. Over 60,000 people signed the petition, sending a clear message to Westminster. Greenpeace volunteers all over the country took the fight to the heart of their communities by:

• Handing out 5,000 beer mats explaining how gas is responsible for the high price of electricity in pubs and chatting with pub landlords
• Chatting with the local community on stalls
• Plastering posters and bus stop ads across the country to make sure MPs couldn’t look the other way.

From a huge protest at the Staythorpe Gas Power Station to political conversations in the halls of the Labour Party conference, we made sure the message was everywhere. 

Our public campaigning was supported by our report, Power Shift. This report explained the problem and set out our proposed solution. It gave the government and supportive MPs the facts they needed to champion our cause and solve the issue.

What exactly changed?

Take the next step

Tell the UK government to lead the renewable revolution.

Sign the petition

In the UK, the most expensive power source sets the price for all electricity. Most of the time, that expensive source is gas. This means even when the vast majority of our electricity comes from cheap renewable energy, even a tiny top-up of gas can make the whole bill expensive. As we move away from fossil fuels and expand renewables, this old system has kept our prices unfairly high.

Many new renewable projects sit outside of this complicated pricing system – years ago, the government started giving new renewable projects ‘set prices’ for their energy so they wouldn’t be affected by fluctuating fossil fuel prices. Now, they are moving older renewable and nuclear plants into this same system. This means that more electricity than ever is capped at set prices, meaning less of the electricity we need to meet demand will be affected by high and volatile gas prices.

Is it perfect? Not yet.

What now? 

We’ve shown that the government will move if we push hard enough. Now, let’s keep the pressure on to ensure the future of UK energy is 100% renewable and 100% affordable.

The post We won! The Great Gas Rip Off is finally ending appeared first on Greenpeace UK.

“Despite Reform’s gains, huge numbers of people have voted for political parties that promise an escape from fossil fuel crises and greater protection for the nature we love. The winning parties in Wales and Scotland both have plans to reach net zero earlier than the Westminster government. The Greens have seen their first two mayors in London and gains from Hastings to Glasgow and Bangor to Norwich. This adds up to a resounding mandate for ambitious action to secure cheap, homegrown renewable energy and to protect our environment.

“The lesson Labour should take from this drubbing is that green policies offer a path out of political irrelevance. Our own polling shows former Labour voters strongly support investing in renewables, taxing the war profits of oil and gas giants and protecting our wildlife and oceans. There are many reasons why people voted Reform, but I’m prepared to bet that few of them involved a desire to rip up the rules that protect nature or to keep our bills at the mercy of Trump’s foreign wars.”

Ends

Contact: Greenpeace UK Press Office – 07970 030 019 / press.uk@greenpeace.org

Notes:

• New YouGov polling commissioned by Greenpeace suggests that voters, particularly Labour defectors, would like to see the Labour government adopt stronger policies on climate and nature. See the results here.
• Greenpeace has analysed the manifestoes in all three nations and assessed each party’s plans on key policy areas including: climate and energy, homes and transport, justice and democracy, and nature and the environment. Read the results here.

The post Comment on Welsh, Scottish and local election results appeared first on Greenpeace UK.