Windows of Opportunity

24th December 2023

Welcome the migrant

“Is immigration good or bad? Some argue that immigrants flood across borders, steal jobs, are a burden on taxpayers and threaten indigenous culture. Others say the opposite: that immigration boosts economic growth, meets skill shortages, and helps create a more dynamic society. Evidence clearly shows that immigrants provide significant economic benefits.” (1)

For financial figures here is some research for UCL: “The researchers showed that immigrants to the UK arriving between 2000 and 2011 were 45% less likely to be on benefits or tax credits than UK natives, and 3% less likely to live in social housing. European Economic Area (EEA) immigrants contributed 34% more in taxes than they received as benefits, while UK natives’ tax payments over the same period were 11% lower than the hand-outs they received.

“Later work by CReAM [UCL Centre for Research and Analysis of Migration] calculated that the net fiscal contribution of immigrants from the post-2004 EU accession states (such as Poland) arriving between 2000 and 2011 was £5 billion, while recent immigrants from the rest of the EU contributed £15 billion. Non-EU immigrants also boosted the public purse by £5 billion overall. In contrast, UK natives’ contribution was negative, costing almost £617 billion.” (2)

Sometimes the words ‘refugee’ and ‘migrant’ are used as interchangeable and with the intent of denigrating the other. Th UNHCR provides the following , together with the reminder that all refugees and migrant are individuals who ‘deserve full respect for their human rights and dignity.’

“Refugees are specifically defined and protected in international law. These are individuals who have fled their homes to escape persecution, conflict, violence, serious human rights violations or other events seriously disturbing public order, and who seek safety in another country. As a result, they require “international protection” from another country, where their own country of origin is unable or willing to protect them.

“Migrants are not as specifically defined under international law, but the term has been used to refer to people who choose to move across borders, not because of any direct threats of persecution, serious harm, or death, but exclusively for other reasons, including for work, education or family reunification. Other complex factors may also be at play, such as escaping hardships due to environmental disasters, famine, or extreme poverty. Those who leave their countries for these reasons would not ordinarily be in need of international protection, as they – unlike refugees – would continue, in principle, to enjoy the protection of their own country when they are abroad and when they return.

“…broadly, refugees and migrants should collectively be referred to as “individuals”, “people”, or “people on the move”. (3)

In the following extract from an article written for Brookings International Press, what is written about refugees would be equally applicable to migrants. It outlines how refugees – and migrants – benefit not just the country they move to, but the one from which they have come as well.

“Not only are refugees not a burden, rather they are welfare-enhancing assets. Indeed, accepting, protecting, and empowering refugees is a win-win-win formula: for the refugees themselves, for the country of destination, and for the country of origin.

“It is a win for the refugees for obvious reasons: The earlier a state commits to protecting refugees, the earlier they can move forward with their lives, without uncertainty blocking the way. Most importantly, accepting them protects the most precious right of all: The right to live.

“Accepting refugees is also a win for the receiving country and the communities that host them. By providing them with the right to work, to health, and to education, refugees can start productive lives in their host countries. The faster they can integrate into the labor force, the faster they can become productive members of society.…Receiving countries can benefit in more ways, too. Refugees could play a fundamental role in fostering international trade and investment. Since they know the business environment quite well, they can mediate between business people in both countries who are willing to invest in the local community and trade with local businesses.

“What about origin countries? They can also benefit immensely in the medium- to long-term from the resettlement of their citizens as refugees in foreign countries. First, the countries of origin also benefit from the creation of business networks between them and the countries where the refugees were resettled. For developing countries overcoming conflict, the flow of investment could be crucial for recovery. In addition to these business networks, the refugees can play a significant role in transferring technologies and knowledge back home, which translates into more competitive and diversified economies. In ongoing research with several co-authors, we show how, for instance, the nations that emerged from the former Yugoslavia hugely benefited from the knowledge and experience gained by Bosnian, Croat, and Serb refugees who temporarily resettled in Germany during the war of the early 1990s.” (4)

The following is an extract from an article by ODI, an independent global think tank, about the World Bank’s World Development Report (WDR) on Migrants, Refugees, and Societies. It highlights the important point that migrants should be given the same rights as protection as non-migrants within a country if maximum benefits for all are to generated.

“As noted in the WDR, formal access to the labour market leads to better outcomes for migrants. In practice, this means a strong regulatory system needs to be in place to ensure labour and human rights protection in all destination states, safe recruitment, decent and varied employment options and access to social protection provisions – even for short-term arrangements such as seasonal work. Reticent policy makers should be reminded that, in turn, better protected workforces mean greater net benefits of migration, including taxes for host countries and greater remittances for countries of origin.

“The 2023 WDR shows clearer than ever that migration can be a win for countries of origin and of destination alike, but only when it is also a win for migrants can we ensure that the full potential of human mobility is reached”. (5)

(1) https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/how-immigration-has-changed-the-world-for-the-better/

(2) https://www.ucl.ac.uk/impact/case-studies/2022/apr/evidence-proves-true-effect-immigration-uk

(3) https://www.unhcr.org/uk/news/stories/refugees-or-migrants-how-word-choices-affect-rights-and-lives

(4) https://www.brookings.edu/articles/refugees-are-a-win-win-win-formula-for-economic-development/

(5) https://odi.org/en/insights/migration-can-be-a-source-of-prosperity-all-countries-but-only-when-it-benefits-migrants-themselves/

Windows of Opportunity

23rd December 2023

Pay taxes

Paying taxes is an essential part of maintaining safe and sustainable societies. Taxation pays for the public services which benefit the whole of society. Avoiding paying tax is destructive of societies and therefore of individual lives. Avoiding tax – whether as an individual or as a company – is wrong but is is the tax avoidance by large multinational companies that probably causes the most harm.

Ethical Consumer writes “Tax avoidance is shifting profits so you have to pay a lower rate of taxes. It involves using loop holes in tax systems so that you can reduce rates in a way that law makers never intended but which is entirely legal. Often, this means registering sales that took place in one country with a company based in another, where tax-rates are lower. For example, in 2017 Amazon registered almost 75% of its UK sales through a Luxembourg based subsidiary. Tax evasion is hiding profits or fiddling accounts in order to avoid taxes, and is definitely illegal. In 2017, it was estimated that globally tax avoidance was losing nations over $500 billion a year.

“In the UK, tax avoidance is channelling much needed money away from the NHS, housing and other vital forms of public infrastructure. But the cost of tax avoidance is even greater in poor nations. In countries where wages – and accordingly individual income taxes – are low, a far higher proportion of government revenue comes from corporate taxation. This can be as much as 16%, compared to 8% in richer countries.

“If looked at in proportion to GDP, the countries that lose the most from tax shifting are consistently the poorest. In Chad, during 2017, the estimated losses to profit shifting were larger than all of the (non-resource) taxes collected in the country that year.” (1)

In a report published in 2010 Christian Aid estimated “that just two forms of tax dodging, transfer mispricing and false invoicing, cost developing countries US$160 billion every year…roughly one and half times the world’s annual aid budget.” (2)

Not paying corporate taxes also affects the UK’s tax revenue. Corporate Tax News reported this summer that “Amazon’s main UK division, Amazon UK Services, has once again avoided paying corporation tax, thanks to tax credits received for its investments in infrastructure. While the company’s pretax profits and sales have increased, there are concerns about the lack of transparency around its total profits and tax contributions. Critics argue that Amazon’s ability to avoid taxes gives the company an unfair advantage over local businesses. The controversy has highlighted the need for more transparency and fair taxation practices from multinational companies operating in the UK.” And “Amazon invested £12 billion in the UK in 2021. This included £1.6 billion spent on infrastructure, such as more robotics for warehouses and a software development center in Swansea. The company’s sales across its entire UK network also increased by £1 billion, making it larger than Asda, the UK’s third-largest supermarket. Amazon claims that it paid a total of £781 million in taxes in the UK, including business rates, employer’s national insurance contributions, and corporation tax. However, critics argue that this figure does not provide a clear picture of Amazon’s tax contributions, especially when considering the tax credits received in the UK and other European countries.” (3)

Turn this round. Just think how more money could be invested in public services, in tackling the climate crisis, and in addressing global injustices, if all the taxes that should be paid, were paid!

The UN is one of the forums where global tax legislation could be reformed. “Developing nations could have a greater say over global tax rules after winning a diplomatic tussle at the United Nations in New York on Wednesday. A new resolution, agreed by UN members, gives the body a mandate to kickstart intergovernmental talks on tax. The policy area has long been dominated by the Paris-headquartered Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), a body largely formed of wealthy countries including the US, UK and Japan. The resolution, presented by the African Group, ultimately paves the way for a UN convention on taxation and a new global tax body, according to campaigners…The resolution was fiercely opposed by some western diplomats behind the scenes in New York, officials on both sides of the debate around the UN’s role on tax affairs said. Some rich nations, including the US, had fought against the resolution in an attempt to maintain a tighter grip on global tax rules. Campaigners want international agreement on measures such as a floor for corporate tax rates, so countries cannot undercut one another, and forcing multinationals to report how much tax they pay in each country.” (4) One of the key campaign groups is the Tax Justice Network – https://taxjustice.net/

In the UK the Fair Tax Foundation campaigns on this issue. “Tax contributions are a key part of the positive social and economic impact made by business – helping the communities in which they operate to deliver valuable public services and to build the infrastructure that allows business to thrive. Via our Fair Tax Mark accreditation scheme, we seek to encourage and recognise businesses that pay the right amount of corporate income tax at the right time and in the right place. We believe that businesses that pay their taxes willingly, fairly and transparently should be celebrated and rewarded.” (4)

As “Fair Tax is at the heart of a fair society, a strong economy and a functioning democracy.” The Fair Tax Foundation also runs a pledge scheme where by individuals and small traders – http://fairtaxpledge.uk/

https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/money-finance/what-tax-avoidance

(2) http://www.financialtransparency.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/ChristianAidTaxReport.pdf

(3) https://tax-planning.org.uk/amazon-uk-services-pays-no-coporation-tax-again/

(4) https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/23/un-agrees-global-tax-rules-resolution-giving-developing-nations-greater-say?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

(5) https://fairtaxmark.net/aboutus/

Windows of Opportunity

22nd December 2023

Jobs for all in a just transition

As steel plants in the UK switch to electric arc furnaces and the production of green steel, there is likely to be a loss of 5000 jobs. (1) (2)(3) During the slump in the demand for oil during Covid, 2000 jobs were on the line at BP alone. (4) If as is needed, oil production declines there will be job losses.

Similar job losses happened when the UK transitioned away from coal, when the UK lost most of its ship building industry, its motor industry etc.

But need it be so? Surely the green industry offers many new job opportunities

Equally a better financed public sector could – and should – provide well paid and well respected jobs in health care, social care, education, transport, etc.

Friends of the Earth recommend both an apprenticeship scheme to give young people training in job skills that have a long term future, and in investing in new green jobs.

“Green jobs are jobs that have a focus on either reducing carbon emissions, restoring nature or making similar environmental improvements. Sustainability managers in businesses, green transport officers and thermal heating specialists are all examples of green jobs. If we’re to create a greener and fairer future for all after the pandemic, we need more green jobs. Not only will they be good for the planet, they can also help address employment inequalities across the country.

The UK government should invest up to £10 billion over the next 5 years to create 250,000 green apprenticeships in England and Wales, with wage subsidies of 50-100% depending on need. “Devolved nations should receive equivalent funding for programmes within their borders.

Alongside green apprenticeships, we’re also calling for the government to fund £40 billion annually in a green infrastructure investment programme that could create more than 1 million jobs for people of all ages, saving the NHS tens of billions of pounds and delivering other significant benefits like healthier air and warmer homes.

“ Not only do green jobs present a golden opportunity to reverse unemployment, they’re also basic common sense. Right now, young people are being taught and given careers advice on jobs that may not even exist in 10 years’ time. We’re setting them up to fail where we could be training them to succeed.” (5)

(1) https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/22/british-steel-owner-preparing-to-cut-as-many-as-2000-jobs-report-says?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

(2) https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/sep/15/tata-steel-seals-500m-uk-support-package-but-big-job-losses-feared?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

(3) https://neweconomics.org/2023/11/a-just-transition-will-require-steely-resolve-from-policy-makers

(4) https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/explainers-52966609

(5) https://friendsoftheearth.uk/climate/whats-green-job-and-how-can-we-create-more-the

Windows of Opportunity

21st December 2023

Universal basic services

“The concept of universal basic services (UBS) is based on the premise that the first job of good government is to make sure everyone’s basic needs are met. This is often best achieved through collective services rather than individual market transactions. The UBS framework sets out clear criteria that public services should be fulfilling:

Free or affordable access according to need, not ability to pay.
A mixed economy of provision, bound by a set of public interest obligations.
Guaranteed fair pay and conditions for service workers.
Environmental sustainability built into the design and delivery of services.
Devolved powers to the lowest appropriate level.

This framework provides a basis to reimagine the design and delivery of ECEC provision as a universal public service that can better meet the needs of children, parents and staff, while making a positive contribution to the economy, society, and environment in which it sits”. (1)

“Why universal basic services? The UK is wealthy, but for many people it is not prosperous. Our economy is failing to deliver for many people. Forces of anger and resentment have entered our politics, as a growing number of people are left behind.” (2)

UCL suggests universal basic services should cover:

Transport
Food
Information
Local democracy
Health and care
Shelter

A report published by the Social Prosperity Network at the UCL Institute for Global Prosperity (IGP) in 2017 estimated the cost as being £42bn (2.3% of UK GDP) which it said could be funded through changes to the Personal Allowance making it fiscally neutral. It would bring most benefit to,those on the lowest incomes saving them £126 a week in living costs. (3) Equally it would contribute to a healthier, both physically and mentally, workforce.

Anna Coote writing for Taylor and Francis Online comments: “Proposals for UBS have been closely informed by the experience of public services in the UK, where government policies since the 1970s have chipped away at the postwar consensus and at the value of benefits in kind. Changes have been driven by a vision of economic success based on personal choice, private ownership, a small state, and a free market, blaming the jobless and poor for their own troubles and urging individuals to help themselves. Many services, including care for children and disabled adults, as well as housing and transport, have been outsourced to for-profit corporations, stripped down to the bare bones, abolished altogether, or left to the vagaries of voluntarism and philanthropy. Combined with cuts to the value of social security benefits, the effects have greatly exacerbated social and economic inequalities and left more than a million living in destitution.” She goes onto say “The case for UBS rests on two key principles: shared needs and collective responsibilities. It recognises that all human beings have the same set of basic needs that must be satisfied in order to survive and thrive, think for one’s self, and participate in society.”

Coote also sees in the provision of universal basic services, the concept of sustainability as proposed in Kate Raworth’s theory of Doughnut Economics. “[T]he concept of UBS embodies an ethos of collective responsibility and a needs-based approach to human welfare, based on sufficiency. As such, it offers a robust framework for policy and practice that is closely aligned with the goal of living well within limits. It seeks to build solidarity and mutual support among people and groups in ways that cannot be achieved by systems based on market transactions alone. By encouraging an awareness of interdependence and developing practical experience of collective responsibility, UBS can help to create favourable conditions for society to “play a pivotal role in imposing limits” on individual freedom to consume more than is required to live a good life.” (4)

Universal basic services is good not just for the individual and society, but also for the environment.

(1) https://neweconomics.org/2023/11/a-fair-start-for-all?link_id=10&can_id=a3029987c1ac6171de26390e6aabf63f&source=email-news-from-nef-the-budget-property-taxes-childcare&email_referrer=email_2123509&email_subject=news-from-nef-the-budget-property-taxes-childcare

(2) https://www.ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/igp/research-projects/2023/jul/universal-basic-services

(3) https://www.ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/ideas/bartlett-review/future-welfare-universal-basic-services

(4) https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15487733.2020.1843854

Windows of Opportunity

20th December 2023

Homes for all

As of January 2023, “at least 271,000 people are recorded as homeless in England, including 123,000 children. Shelter’s detailed analysis of official homelessness figures and responses to a Freedom of Information request shows that one in 208 people in England are without a home. Of these, 2,400 people are sleeping rough on any given night, 15,000 people are in hostels or supported accommodation and nearly 250,000 are living in temporary accommodation – most of whom are families.

“The number of people living in temporary accommodation has risen by an alarming 74% in the last 10 years – something the charity argues is driven by the chronic shortage of social homes, and an over-reliance on grossly expensive and unstable private renting.

“More than two-thirds of families (68%) living in temporary accommodation have been there for over a year, showing this type of accommodation is becoming less and less “temporary” as families cannot escape homelessness due to the severe lack of affordable homes. This is a situation made even worse by the three-year freeze on housing benefit, and cost of living crisis.” (1)

Homelessness causes ill health (physical and mental), disrupts education for children, makes it harder to find and maintain gainful employment, and inhibits the building of resilient communities.

Rented accommodation can be as much of a problem as . “Wright, the chair of the Association of Chief Environmental Health Officers in England, spoke to the Guardian as part of a series shining a light on Britain’s private rental sector. He said landlords had been able to get away with renting out squalid homes because there was no legal minimum standard that private rented properties in England must meet, unlike in the social housing sector. This means it is not illegal for a landlord to rent out a property with the most serious health hazards, though they must have an energy safety certificate.”(2)

“There are now more tenants than at any point since the millennium; one in five of us in England and Wales is now a member of “generation rent”. The sector has never been more relevant, but its problems have also never been more obvious. Renters are handing over increasingly unsustainable portions of their pay in order to live in insecure tenancies, often in dangerous properties.

The government’s promised rental reform bill … aims to tackle some of these issues. Despite this, action on many problems, including no-fault evictions, may still take years to materialise.” (3) The article lists 5 reasons why renters are experiencing increasing problems.

Renting is increasingly unaffordable.

Buying a property is even more out of reach.

The UK is one of the most expensive places to rent.

Current laws make renting an option that lacks security.

The condition of many rentals is poor.

“But we should all be hopeful…. We have enough homes in this country — but the wrong people own them, and the wrong people make the wrong decisions about how much rent the rest of us should pay and what conditions we should put up with. Just as homes were taken out of public hands, they can be put back into them. Rotting window frames can be replaced. Mould can be cleared. Rents can be brought down. We have all the materials to do so — all that’s missing is political will. The government’s, and ours.

“We want to make it government policy to turn private rental properties — including those built by councils which have now fallen into the hands of private landlords — into retrofitted social homes, saving tenants millions of pounds in rent and energy bills, and the earth from millions of tonnes of carbon” (4)

“The most recent government statistics, released in November 2023, showed there were 261,189 long-term empty properties in England. That figure represents a rise of 12,556 homes compared to 2022, up 5% annually and 16% since before the pandemic in 2019. The biggest was recorded in the South West – where there has been widespread concern about second homes – with the number of long-term empty homes rising 9% in just a year. Rebecca Moore, AEH director, said: “It beggars belief that while children are growing up sharing beds in temporary accommodation, our nation has over a quarter of a million homes sitting empty. To say this is a national disgrace is a profound understatement. Long-term empties are a huge missed opportunity to invest in green retrofit and create new jobs.” (5)

Shelter has drawn up the following manifesto ask for the next general election (Read the shorter executive summary [PDF, 7MB])

“Our manifesto asks party leaders to:

Build a new generation of social homes
Make renting affordable
Raise standards in rented homes
Strengthen housing rights” (6)

(1) https://england.shelter.org.uk/media/press_release/at_least_271000_people_are_homeless_in_england_today

(2) https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/nov/13/loophole-adds-to-shameful-rental-conditions-in-england-says-housing-chief?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

(3) https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/nov/13/five-charts-explain-state-uk-rental-sector?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

(4) https://neweconomics.org/2023/04/council-housing-gave-me-a-childhood

(5) https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/how-many-empty-homes-are-there-in-the-uk/

(6) https://england.shelter.org.uk/support_us/campaigns/general_election

For more groups campaigning for homes for all – http://www.axethehousingact.org.uk/

Windows of Opportunity

19th December 2023

Investing in the grid

“Advanced economies will need to lay at least 23 million kilometres of power lines by 2040 to meet their renewable energy goals, according to a recent report, and on a global level, 80m km of cable will be needed. “If we want clean electricity, we need not only clean methods of generation, but we need to build grids. It has been a blind spot of governments’ clean energy transition programmes of,” said Birol.

“Global demand for components such as high-voltage cables, pylons and converter station equipment threatens to outstrip manufacturing capacity, pushing British energy companies into an international race to secure supplies.

“Electricity demand in the UK is forecast to more than double by 2040 as fossil fuel heating systems and internal combustion engines are swapped for electric vehicles and heat pumps. Heavy industry must also switch away from fossil fuels in favour of clean power. To meet the demands of an electrified economy, the government wants to quadruple the UK’s offshore wind power capacity to 50 gigawatts by 2030, and solar farms and battery facilities storing power generated by wind and solar are expected to mushroom across the country.

“But for every pound spent on clean energy projects another pound must be spent on upgrading the power grids, according to Keith Anderson, head of Scottish Power. “There’s no point investing in renewables without investing in the grid. It’s like buying a new iPhone and not having a cable to go with it,” he said.” https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/nov/25/race-to-get-uk-electricity-grid-ready-for-net-zero?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Windows of Opportunity

18th December 2023

Community energy projects

“Are there public buildings in your community, like schools or sports clubs, that could have solar PV panels on the roof? Or do you have a natural resource nearby, like a river or a windy hilltop, that could be used to generate electricity with a hydro project or wind turbine?

That’s what community energy is all about: people coming together, taking action and using local resources to manage or generate energy for their community.” (1)

“Community energy is about people and communities taking democratic control over their energy future, by understanding, generating, using, owning and saving energy in their communities, as well as working together across regions and nationally.

“The sector is ever growing, and includes a diverse range of projects, people and directions of work and activity. For a good introduction and summary on the diversity, size and benefits of the sector, we recommend starting with the latest State of the Sector Report. Key highlights from our 2022 State of the Sector Report include:

217,489 people engaged in the sector
£3.35m saved on energy bills from the latest activities in efficiency & fuel poverty *
143,000 tCO2e saved in one year of work done by communities ” (2)
Projects included in Community Energy England’s report include things such as car sharing and home insulation schemes as well as energy generation. At present UK legislation obliges community energy generation projects to sell their energy to the UK grid, where it is then sold on to household energy suppliers like Octopus or SSE. This means that prices remain tied to general energy costs, determined by fossil fuels. This legislative obstacle is being challengers by the campaign group Power to the People. For more information on this see the Ethical Consumer report – https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/energy/what-community-energy

This Autumn the UK Government created a £10million Community Energy Fund for which urban and rural communities can compete to secure grants for local renewable energy projects. (3)

(1) https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/how-community-energy-schemes-can-help-the-uk-reach-net-zero/

(2) https://communityenergyengland.org/pages/who-we-are

A guide to getting started – https://communityenergyengland.org/files/document/672/1675676619_CES_CEEChecked-Top10toGettingStarted-Jan2023.pdf

(3) https://www.gov.uk/government/news/communities-at-the-heart-of-new-fund-to-boost-local-growth-and-energy-security

Windows of Opportunity

17th December 2023

Treat water as a common good

“Governments must urgently stop subsidising the extraction and overuse of water through misdirected agricultural subsidies, and industries from mining to manufacturing must be made to overhaul their wasteful practices, according to the Global Commission on the Economics of Water. Nations must start to manage water as a global common good, because most countries are highly dependent on their neighbours for water supplies, and overuse, pollution and the climate crisis threaten water supplies globally.” (1)

“”However, water is not just a casualty but also a driver of the climate crisis,” reads the report. “Extreme water events cause an immediate loss of carbon uptake in nature. Droughts lead to fires and massive loss of biomass, carbon, and biodiversity. The loss of wetlands is depleting the planet’s greatest carbon store, while the drop in soil moisture is reducing the terrestrial and forest ecosystem’s ability to sequester carbon… We will fail on climate change if we fail on water,”” (2)

We forget how much water is used by mining and industry (17% of the world’s freshwater use) and by agriculture (70%) – whilst domestic/ municipal use accounts for 12%. By 2030 demand is likely to exceed supply by approximately 40%. This is clearly a problem, and as with so many cases of shortages, it is likely that the poorest in society and the poorest nations will bear the brunt of distress.

The matter is further compounded because the source of a water supply may lay outside the user’s borders. Water from the Swiss Alps, feeds the River Po in Italy; the glaciers in the Himalayas feed four great rivers – Brahmaputra, Ganges, Indus, and Tarim. Other countries rely on ‘green water’ where water held in the soil and released through transpiration from trees and other plants, then condenses and falls as rain further down wind. Changes in land use up wind – such as deforestation – can reduce rainfall. (2) Again this can make one country dependent on another for its water. This is one of the causes of the drought being experienced in the Amazon basin (3).

These cross border issues have the potential for conflict as is already the case in the West Bank (4)

The Global Commission on the Economics of Water recommends seven steps that policymakers must take to avoid a water shortage by the end of the decade, including:

Manage water supplies as a common good by recognizing that water is critical to food security and all sustainable development goals;
Mobilize multiple stakeholders—public, private, civil society, and local community—to scale up investments in water through new
modalities of public-private partnerships;
Cease underpricing water and target support for the poor;
Phase out water and agriculture subsidies that “generate excessive water consumption and other environmentally damaging practices”;
Establish Just Water Partnerships to enable investments in water access, resilience and sustainability in low- and middle-income countries;
Move forward on steps that can be taken this decade to “move the needle significantly,” including fortifying depleted freshwater systems, recycling industrial and urban wastewater, reusing water in the production of critical materials, and shifting agricultural systems to include less water-intensive crops and drought-resistant farming; and
Reshape multilateral governance of water by incorporating new water standards into trade agreements and prioritizing equality in water decision-making. (2)

(3) https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/08/green-water-climate-change-deforestation/

(4) see – https://theconversation.com/drought-in-the-amazon-understanding-the-causes-and-the-need-for-an-immediate-action-plan-to-save-the-biome-215650)

(5) see – https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/17/how-israel-uses-water-to-control-west-bank-palestine?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Windows of Opportunity

16th December 2023

Use less water

“Water and climate change are inextricably linked. Climate change affects the world’s water in complex ways. From unpredictable rainfall patterns to shrinking ice sheets, rising sea levels, floods and droughts – most impacts of climate change come down to water ….Only 0.5 per cent of water on Earth is useable and available freshwater – and climate change is dangerously affecting that supply. Over the past twenty years, terrestrial water storage – including soil moisture, snow and ice – has dropped at a rate of 1 cm per year, with major ramifications for water security” (1)

“[I]n the world’s push to achieve a low-carbon economy, water is often forgotten. The focus for decarbonisation often lies on transportation, manufacturing, or other industrial processes, but water utilities are responsible for two percent of total annual global emissions — about as much as the shipping industry. Water cannot be excluded when designing policies to reduce emissions. Water utility companies must make efforts to decarbonise their activities, especially through the energy-intensive process of treating and processing wastewater.” (2)

In 2019 the head of Environment Agency, Sir James Bevan said “We need water wastage to be as socially unacceptable as blowing smoke in the face of a baby or throwing your plastic bags into the sea …. the average person’s daily water use of 140 litres could be cut to 100 litres in 20 years by more efficient use in homes and gardens.” (3)

Tips for using less water – https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/sep/05/how-to-use-less-water-15-tips-beef-burgers-megabutts-clothes?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

And also https://friendsoftheearth.uk/sustainable-living/13-best-ways-save-water

For interest, I now only shower once a week, instead washing in a basin every day – and then using that water to flush the loo.

Windows of Opportunity

15th December 2023

Regenerative farming

The World Economic Forum advocates for regenerative farming as “an agricultural technique that essentially focuses on the health of the soil more than other types of agriculture tend to do. Obviously, soil is effectively the base of any farm, and surprisingly, it can sequester quite a bit of our planet’s CO2. Therefore, treating it organically, with natural products and less human disturbance, is key.” (1)

Scottish based Farming For a Better Climate describes regenerative farming as “an approach centred around improving and revitalising soil health. The group are focusing their work around the following principles:

Minimise soil disturbance – help support a healthy soil food web.
Maximise crop diversity – different crops bring different rooting depths and attributes,
supporting a range of biodiversity both above and below ground.
Provide constant soil cover – protect soils from wind and water erosion; reduces water loss.
Keep a living root in the system – root exudates benefit microbial populations, supporting soil health.
Integration of livestock – promoting species diversity from microbes to mammals and putting dung back into the system.” (2)

A report produced by the World Economic Forum in 2022 found “that if just an additional 20% of farmers adopted climate-smart , by 2030, the EU could reduce its annual agricultural GHG emissions by 6% and improve soil health over an area equivalent to 14% of EU’s agricultural land while improving livelihoods by between €1.9 €9.£ billion annually.” (3)

And not just in Europe.

“By 2040, through just a 50% adoption of regenerative agriculture across Africa, farmers could see:

30% reduction in soil erosion
Up to a 60% increase in water infiltration rates
24% increase in nitrogen content
20% increase in carbon content, or higher depending on the intervention – and not just topsoil (this is huge as soil is the second biggest storehouse of carbon, after oceans). The benefits are even greater when shrubs and grasses are promoted through agroforestry.”