MP tells COP26 President to block Cumbria coal mine plans

This afternoon, Cumbrian MP Tim Farron has written to the President of the COP26 climate conference, Alok Sharma, urging him to block plans for a new coal mine in Cumbria.

According to a report in the Times at the weekend, Mr Sharma was said to be "apoplectic" with cabinet colleague Robert Jenrick, the Communities Secretary, after he gave the green light to the coal mine earlier this month.

The mine is set to produce 2.78 million tonnes of coal per year for a projected 50 years. The burning of this coal will result in the emission of 9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year until 2074.

In his letter to Alok Sharma, Tim said: "How can we possibly stand on the world stage and proclaim that we are leading the fight against catastrophic climate change when we are allowing this to go ahead?

"How can we rightly tell China and others that they must do far more to tackle climate change when we are building a coal mine in our own backyard?

"I urge you to show real courage and leadership on this most important of issues by telling your colleagues in Government to think again and stop the building of this new coal mine."