'Janet Daby, I beg you' - Is your MP going to the National Emergency Briefing?
Over 1000 UK scientists have written to MPs urging them to attend the briefing on 27 November, which will highlight the accelerating dangers of climate and nature breakdown.
North Lewisham ranked first out of all UK constituencies in the climate risk index published by insurance giant Axa in 2024. The index factors the risks of extreme heat and flooding with socioeconomic data, to provide a score of climate vulnerability.
Six other London constituencies are ranked in the top 10 for climate vulnerability: Bethnal Green and Stepney, Hackney South and Shoreditch, Vauxhall and Camberwell Green, Battersea, Poplar and Limehouse and West Ham and Beckton.
The UK Green Building Council (UKBGC) Climate Resilience Roadmap published in July 2025 found London at acute risk of overheating, more at risk than any other UK city. The reasons were its southern location, the urban heat island effect and the prevalence of small, single aspect homes.
Scientists from universities across the UK, including over 400 professors, have written an open letter to MPs urging them to attend the National Emergency Briefing for climate and nature on 27 November.
"The harmful consequences .. are here now"
"The harmful consequences of environmental breakdown are not distant or confined to other nations," they warn.
"They are here now in floods and heatwaves, in rising food and energy bills, and in threats to public health."
The event offers nine short briefings from UK experts, which will cover the harms facing the UK including overheating, flooding, sea level rise, ecosystem collapse and threats to food supplies, to health and to national security.
Experts include Paul Behrens, a British Academy Global Professor who researches climate, energy and food systems, and Nathalie Seddon, Professor of Biodiversity at Oxford University, who founded the Nature based solutions initiative.
The letter emphasises that the briefing is not party-political, and will include evidence-based solutions which will "improve the lives of ordinary people".
There are multiple different explanations for parliament's reluctance to act on the climate and nature crises, including the the short-term horizons of the electoral cycle.
But the scientists behind the initiative believe that many MPs do not have the up-to-date scientific understanding to grasp the enormity of the accelerating climate and nature crises.
The make up of Westminster does not favour those who with a background in science - although most MPs have university degrees, only 12% (78 MPs) have a degree in STEMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths or Medicine).
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"Dear Janet Daby .. "
Lewisham residents have been appealing to their MPs to attend.
Victoria Grenier wrote to Janet Daby, MP for Lewisham East (her letter is in the image above). "This is no joke, we need an MP who listens to the science ...
"No one wants to see Lewisham ravaged by floods, extreme temperatures and drought ..
"Being well informed is crucial for wise decision making, so please go, the kids deserve a decent future and at the moment it's not looking good .."
Local residents with family and friends in Jamaica witnessed the impacts of climate change as Hurricane Melissa barrelled through the Caribbean at the end of October.
It was the worst storm to hit the island since records began and scientists have already confirmed the role of climate change.
Of Lewisham's three MPs, only Vicky Foxcroft, MP for Lewisham North has confirmed her attendance at the briefing.
Janet Daby and Ellie Reeves, MP for Lewisham West and East Dulwich have not yet responded.
London climate resilience plans need government support
London mayor Sadiq Khan commissioned the London Climate Resilience review which was published in July 2024, immediately following the general election.
It acknowledges that climate impacts fall hardest on London's poorest communities and that adaptation measures must also make London a "fairer and more equal city".
The report found that "around 43% of London properties are likely to be affected by subsidence by 2030".
It calls for a "reset", with projects including upgrades to the Thames Barrier, a new reservoir, and a Strategic Water Authority for London. But many of the largest projects depend on government support.
At the time of publication, Sadiq Khan said: "London stands ready to work with the new government, which pledged in its manifesto to improve resilience".
As the government's record on climate and nature comes into question, the National Emergency Briefing is urging all MPs to listen to the science and "act proportionately to the crisis."
You can check whether your MP is attending here.
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