The signs are promising.
T-shirts, shorts and sandals are out of hibernation, willow is hitting leather on village greens and the whiff of barbecued food fills the weekend air – it all suggests the Great British Summer has arrived.
OK, so there isn’t wall-to-wall sunshine – well Wimbledon is coming – but we all have the fair expectation that the sun will get its hat on at some stage soon and we’ll be able to bask in its rays for a few glorious moments.
But for some, British Summer Time brings weather misery. Remember the floods of this time last year?
They certainly won’t be forgotten by the families of the 13 people who died as a result or the 55,000 home owners and 7,000 businesses that were deluged.
The Environment Agency says May to July 2007 was the wettest since 1766 when reliable records began to be collected.
Getting worse
Sir Michael Pitt, who led an independent government review into the 2007 floods, said, `The scale of the problem is likely to get worse.
`We are not sure whether last summer’s events were part of a wider pattern of climate change but we do know that events of this kind are likely to become more frequent as the climate changes.’
Which brings us back to today.
Or more precisely next week when the government’s Climate Change Bill, which is progressing through parliament, reaches the committee stage.
This bill is significant. It’s the first would-be law in the world aiming to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
It proposes to cut UK carbon output by 60 per cent by 2050. Tearfund argues that for the sake of developing countries that are also experiencing extremes of weather, it needs to raise this level to 80 per cent to keep up with the latest science.
Final furlong
Tearfund also wants some holes in the bill to be filled. The UK’s share of international aviation and shipping emissions needs to be included as aviation especially is one of the fastest growing sources of emissions in the UK.
Both these amendments will be considered in the committee stage and as the bill is in the final furlong to becoming law in the autumn, time is running out for Tearfund and others to influence the lawmakers.
Tearfund is urging supporters to write to their MPs, calling on them to back the amendments and give the bill more teeth.
• Please pray that MPs on the committee reviewing the Climate Change Bill are supportive of the Tearfund-backed amendments.
• Pray that the needs of developing countries are kept in the forefront of MPs’ minds as the bill progresses through parliament.
• Pray for God’s support for those traumatised by last year’s UK floods and for those still living in temporary accommodation as a result of flood damage.