500 signatures reached
To: Tyne & Wear Pension Fund & council members: South Tyneside, Sunderland, Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland
STOP TYNE & WEAR PENSION FUND INVESTING IN FOSSIL FUELS
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1. Freeze any new investments in fossil fuels immediately
2. Divest from investments in fossil fuels by 2026
3. Reinvest in the green economy to help the North East lead the way to a sustainable future
Why is this important?
Millions of pounds of public money – our local rates – are being spent on fossil fuel companies. We all know that carbon emissions from oil, gas and coal are harming our planet, threatening the future of humanity and the extinction of up to a million species.
Tyne & Wear Pension Fund invests more than £230 million in fossil fuels. It has recently adopted a climate policy that has 2050 as its deadline for net zero investment. 2050 is far too late to protect humanity and our planet from disastrous temperature rises.
Our UK Government, our local councils and countries around the world are committed to ending the use of the fossil fuels that are pumping carbon emissions into our air. They agree that this is URGENT! All the councils that are part of the Tyne and Wear Pension Fund have declared a climate emergency but have not sold (“divested") their pension holdings in fossil-fuel companies.
-the United Nations have said we are at “code red” for humanity.
-our current emissions are on target for disastrous temperature rises.
-the fossil fuel industry is not changing quickly enough to meet the Paris Agreement targets that are vital to our safety.
Many other pension funds have made the decision to divest from fossil fuel investment. We call on Tyne & Wear Pension Fund to do the same. And we call on the six local authorities that are members of the fund – and scores of other smaller organisations – to make clear their support for divestment as soon as possible.
Fossil fuel companies have five times the reserves that match the Paris Agreements limits. But they are still pushing to find more fossil fuel reserves and still making huge profits from speeding up global warming. Continued engagement with and investment in the fossil fuel industry jeopardises the very future that pension funds are supposed to guarantee and secure. Tyne & Wear must end that investment, and switch to others, especially the green economy.
Let’s work together:
-for a sustainable, viable and secure future for us all and our children
-to reverse the decline of biodiversity and support our wildlife and countryside
-to promote clean air and a healthier society.
Thank you for your support.