Anna McMorrin MP retraced her father’s 900 mile expedition across Antarctica at the British Antarctic Survey in preparation for her new Green Share Bill.
Welsh Labour MP for Cardiff North, Anna McMorrin visited the British Antarctic Survey in Cambridge in an emotional journey to reconnect with her father, relive his three year expedition across Antarctica and better understand the impact of global warming on our planet.
The MP’s father, Ian McMorrin spent three years exploring and mapping Antarctica’s unchartered landscapes. Just one expedition took him over nine hundred miles across Antarctica. His pioneering work; hand drawn maps and meticulous records have paved the way for subsequent scientists and geologists to better understand the harsh reality of climate change.
Archives at the British Antarctic Survey stem back hundreds of years. McMorrin was able to relive her father’s experiences and those of his colleagues through his detailed diary entries, photographs and records, including records of their beloved companions – their dogs – without whom none of their work would have been possible. His ground-breaking research was immortalised in the naming of the McMorrin Glacier.
Anna McMorrin said:
“It was absolutely fascinating and very emotional to retrace my father’s steps throughout his time in Antarctica, to see his familiar handwriting on the maps he’d drawn and see pictures of his favourite dogs about whom he used to tell me stories as I was growing up.
I am immensely proud that my father’s work lay the foundations for the scientists who followed, even today, and has been integral to the vital work in tackling the climate emergency we face.
He instilled in me his love of the natural world which has shaped my focus throughout my entire career and my time as an MP. That’s why I’ve introduced my Green Share Bill into Parliament which would be transformational in the way we tackle climate change- empowering communities and effecting real change from the ground up.”
The Welsh Labour MP introduced her Bill into Parliament last month which has cross party support and will receive its Second Reading on the 27th March. The Green Share Bill seeks to put co-operatives and member-owned businesses, who are already leading the way on innovative, green projects, on a level playing field to private companies. It unlocks vital green finance for them to invest in environmentally sustainable projects such as renewable energy, retrofitting of social homes and the building of zero-carbon homes, all of which are integral to limiting the effects of global warming.
Director of British Antarctic Survey, Professor Dame Jane Francis, said:
“Antarctica is the canary in the coal mine. Ice collected from Antarctica shows what the climate was like over the past one million years and how our current high levels of carbon dioxide have led to warmer temperatures and rising sea levels. The work of British Antarctic Survey is to gather the data and present our research so policymakers can prepare for how we tackle the climate crisis.”
Anna McMorrin reflected:
“This visit was a stark reminder of the devastating impact of human action on our planet. Our children and grandchildren will judge us in our how far we rise to meet this global challenge. This decade must be a decade of climate action, not another decade of disappointment.
I will continue to sound the alarm, until the UK Government eventually sits up and takes note.”