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Local Matters - views from our MP and Local Councillor
David Ruffley MP
young to start being food aware!
World School Milk Day
Councillor Mark Ereira-Guyer
"Milk
Creating the Greenest County
comes from the local supermarket."
According to the organisers of World School
Suffolk County Council & St Edmundsbury
Milk Day this is the answer that too many
Borough Council are ambitious about
children give when asked where milk
David Ruffley MP
Creating the Greenest County - and I am
comes from! While in Bury St Edmunds, sur-
pleased to report that there is sustained
rounded as we are by agricultural businesses, I'm sure children
across the board political concensus on
would give the correct answer, it does draw attention to the
this objective. So your local councils are
fact that we take our supply of food for granted.
taking action and beginning to provide
leadership. Climate change implicationsI am supporting World School Milk Day this year at Tollgate
are being taken very seriously in everythingPrimary School in Bury St Edmunds where healthy lunchboxes,
that your local councils are doing. Yet, thismilk drinking and food awareness are all on the menu. It is an
Cllr Mark
Ereira-Guyer- as we all know - is no-where enough.
international event, co-ordinated by the Food and Agriculture
Organisation of the United Nations, to promote the impor-
All newly arrived County Councillors like myself have been
tance of drinking school milk to children in a fun and educa-
alerted by staff that, based on national UK Climate
tional way.
projections, more freak weather is likely here in Suffolk with
flash flooding and storms being the norm in the years ahead.
At this time of year we also celebrate harvest festival which
Our beautiful heritage coast is at major risk from rising sea
highlights the abundance of high quality, locally produced
levels. By 2020 summer rain could decrease by 6%
food and drink products available to us in Suffolk. However, it
increasing the risk of serious drought and major crop failures.
is a sad fact that Britain has become increasingly dependent
Global greenhouse gas emissions are continuing to soar
on imports of food we could grow ourselves. In the last
alarmingly - here in Suffolk temperature rises of well over 2C
decade the UK's self-sufficiency in indigenous food has fallen
are predicted. To learn more I urge you to view the Suffolk's
by 9% from 82% in 1998 to 73% in 2008.
Green County website www.greensuffolk.org
I continue to campaign for statutory country of origin labelling
Whilst the predicted impacts are bad enough here, climate
on food products to support our Suffolk farmers and I encour-
change is hitting the world's poor first and worst. Christain Aid
age everyone to exercise food awareness and buy locally
is spearheading a campaign leading up to the vital, and
produced food whenever possible. As I will be telling the
possibly last-chance, UN climate talks in Copenhagen this
school children while they drink their milk - it is never too
December. More pressure on the world's politicians is required
to ensure that they do the right thing.
Yet we can't all sit around waiting for our local council to take
action or international agreements - we need as individuals
and families move to take action if we are to maximise our
chances of preventing runaway climate change; we must
together quickly and massively to cut global emissions. There
is a new environmatal campaign aiming at individual action
- www.1010uk.org - which seeks to encourage people like
you and me to commit to reducing their own carbon
emissions by 10% in 2010. I've signed up, so have my family -
we're going to do all we can to reduce our carbon
emissions. It is not easy, but we are mindful of Ghandi's
saying: "Live simply that others may simply live".
Local church groups in Bury St Edmunds are organising an
event called 'Why Green' to be held at All Saints Church on
Park Road on Thursday 8th October at 8pm.
Councillor Mark Ereira-Guyer
Green Party - Tower Division, Bury St Edmunds
mark.ereira@suffolk.gov.uk 07545 42 38 41
At last!
You can now dance again to that great music
from the 1960s/70s
Horringer Community Centre
Saturday 24th October - 7.30 until midnight
DISCO
Tickets £10 per person (refreshments inc)
Contact John Porter on 01284 735596
4 www.flyeronline.co.uk Please mention The Flyer when responding to advertisements
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