SCOTLAND’S political leaders found themselves on the “sharp end” of scathing criticism from young people as they attended a youth hustings on climate change.
At a YouthLink digital event, the leaders of the SNP, Scottish Greens, Labour, Conservatives, and LibDems were accused of ignoring the environmental problems facing the young people of today.
Dylan Hamilton, a 16-year-old climate and environmental activist from West Lothian, accused politicians of patronising young people.
He said: “I want to show you all we are very, very angry. We are trying to knock down your doors.
“I have sacrificed my education and having a normal childhood to pressure you to fix a problem that we have known about for a decade before I was born.
“If the comments here tonight have shown us anything, it’s that young people don’t agree that you have done what is necessary either.
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“All of the important climate deadlines, 2030, 2045, 2050 I will live through. If I live to the same age as my granny lived to, I will see the next century. This is my future life and it’s the lives of people around the world right now. You should not be inspired by us, you should be angry and upset.
“This is my Highers year, during a global pandemic and I have a chronic illness. I should have enough to worry about.”
Across the course of the debate, all five party leaders said they would ban single use plastics and there was agreement that climate education in Scottish schools needed to be put in place as a priority.
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said it was right young people “bang down our doors” and that she would not “pass the buck” to the younger generation.
She said: "We can’t just recognise, we need to act. This is a pivotal moment. When things fall apart you can choose how you put them back together.
“We need to prioritise an investment-led green recovery era and tackling inequalities. Words are easy but hold us to account on our actions."
Patrick Harvie, co-leader of the Scottish Greens, said these issues are frightening and daunting: "It can create a lot of anxiety to face up to the challenges that your generation has been left to face. This moment is an incredible opportunity. We need to invest in the future and reshape our society.”
He went on: “We shouldn’t have large swathes of our landscape ecologically degraded so that rich people can come along and shoot birds for fun. Humanity has, and continues to, perpetrate a war against nature.
“The scale of what’s required here is extraordinary.”
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The leader of the Scottish LibDems, Willie Rennie, thanked young people for a “feisty” debate, adding: “You have all made us feel uncomfortable. This is the sharp end and I am grateful for you being very blunt with us.
“We need to make sure we contribute to the sustainable development of our country if we are going to have a planet for future generations.”
The “Climate Hot Seat” was organised by young people aged 13-32 representing seven youth organisations in Scotland.
The event was a space specifically for young people to hold party leaders accountable for their climate action and to give other young people valuable information in advance of casting their vote on May 6.
You can watch the full debate on YouthLink’s YouTube channel here.
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