Tag: tackle

Member of Parliament Introduces Bold Legislation to Tackle Climate Crisis
London, September 4, 2023 – In a move that promises to reshape the landscape of climate policy, Member of Parliament (MP) Sarah Mitchell introduced a comprehensive legislative proposal today aimed at addressing the pressing issue of climate change. The bill, titled the “Climate Action Act 2023,” outlines a series of ambitious measures designed to accelerate the transition to a sustainable and carbon-neutral society.
The proposed legislation includes a range of key provisions, including:
1. Aggressive Carbon Reduction Targets: The bill commits the government to achieve a 50% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and a net-zero emissions target by 2050. MP Mitchell stated, “We cannot afford to wait any longer; immediate action is needed to curb the devastating effects of climate change.”
2. Renewable Energy Revolution: To drive the transition to cleaner energy sources, the proposal mandates a significant increase in investments in renewable energy projects. “Renewable energy is the future,” Mitchell emphasized. “This bill will ensure we harness the power of the sun, wind, and water to fuel our nation.”
3. Sustainable Transportation: In a bid to transform the transportation sector, the bill calls for the expansion of public transportation, cycling infrastructure, and electric vehicle charging networks. “We aim to make greener choices the easier choices for our citizens,” said MP Mitchell.
4. Environmental Accountability: The Climate Action Act 2023 establishes robust monitoring and reporting mechanisms to track progress towards climate goals. Independent panels will be responsible for evaluating government efforts and ensuring transparency.
Environmental experts and climate activists have welcomed the proposal, considering it a significant step toward addressing the climate crisis. Dr. Emily Turner, a leading climate scientist, commented, “This legislation aligns with the urgency of the situation. It sends a clear message that governments must take bold actions to safeguard our planet.”
Greenpeace UK’s Executive Director, Mark Jenkins, also praised the bill, stating, “We are thrilled to see a comprehensive climate action plan being put forth. It’s a testament to the growing public demand for real climate action.”
The proposal is set to undergo parliamentary debate in the coming weeks, with MP Mitchell optimistic about its prospects. “This legislation represents our commitment to future generations,” she concluded. “It’s time to turn words into action and lead the way in the global fight against climate change.”
The Climate Action Act 2023 could reshape the UK’s environmental landscape, ushering in a new era of sustainability and carbon reduction.
September 4, 2023
Florida lawmakers restrict pronouns and tackle book objections in sweeping education bill

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Florida’s proposed parental rights expansions, FL HB1069 (23R), are part of the push by state conservatives to uproot what they say is “indoctrination” in schools and is one of several bills taken up this session focusing on the LGBTQ community and transness in particular. It’s an issue DeSantis frequently raises ahead of his expected presidential bid, where he regularly decries teachers who discuss gender identity with young students.
It’s also led to high profile fights pitting Florida Republicans and DeSantis against LGBTQ supports such as the Biden administration and Walt Disney Co., who said such legislation with further marginalize LGBTQ students and will lead to increased bullying and even suicide.
The bill will broaden the state’s prohibition on teaching about sexual identity and gender orientation from kindergarten through third grade to pre-K through eighth grade, though in April the Florida Board of Education already expanded the restrictions to all public schools through high school.
It also targets how school staff and students can use pronouns on K-12 campuses. Specifically, the legislation stipulates that school employees can’t ask students for their preferred pronouns and restricts school staff from sharing their pronouns with students if they “do not correspond” with their sex. Under the bill, it would be “false to ascribe” a person with a pronoun that “does not correspond to such person’s sex.”
“The ‘Don’t Say LGBTQ’ law has already caused sweeping damage across our state,” said Jon Harris Maurer, director of public policy at Equality Florida, an LGBTQ advocacy group. “It was wrong when it was adopted, and expanding it is wrong now. State Democrats have joined LGBTQ advocates in opposing the bill throughout the two-month session, contending that the policies equate to sex discrimination and are disrespectful to LGBTQ students and families.
Democrats suggested that even though the bill isn’t explicitly titled “Don’t Say Gay,” its policies extend beyond the language in the legislation and target the LGBTQ community, pointing to instances such as a Republican House member labeling transgender people as demons, imps and mutants.
Democrats argued that the legislation being taken up by Republicans is pushing people away from Florida, such as former Miami Heat basketball star Dwyane Wade, who said he left the state because he has a 15-year-old transgender daughter.
“Let’s be honest about at least what this bill is about,” state Sen. Tina Polsky (D-Boca Raton) said on the floor Tuesday. “It is about trying to silence any discussion about anything different from heterosexuality.”

But Republican legislators, who hold supermajorities in both chambers, maintain that expanding the parental rights law is necessary to ensure the state’s youngest students learn about adult topics like sexual orientation and gender identity from their parents instead of teachers.
Similar to last year, when the parental rights bill was introduced, conservatives have fought against the narrative surrounding the bill, condemning opponents who call the measure “Don’t Say Gay” and for politicizing an issue they say is “common sense.”
State Sen. Doug Broxson (R-Gulf Breeze), the Senate’s budget chief, addressed this Wednesday when speaking about why state Republicans don’t always debate controversial bills.
“They’re sitting there with a mandate from their district that says ‘Senator, would you make sure you reinforce common sense?’ Just do what makes sense,” Broxson said on the floor. “You don’t have to debate about it, you don’t have to get up and shout, scream. Just push a button that you believe in common sense.”
Additionally, the bill aims to expand Florida law to require that books facing objections for being pornographic, harmful to minors, or describe or depict sexual activity must be pulled within five days and remain out of circulation for the duration of the challenge.
This comes as DeSantis, along with other Florida conservatives, seek to remove books with graphic content from schools, taking aim at specific titles such as “Gender Queer: A Memoir” by Maia Kobabe, which depicts sex acts.
Democrats criticize this provision as a “ban first, review later” mentality and censorship in education. But Republicans contend the measure is focused on protecting children from explicit content.
“We need to keep the discussion about what would be termed as book banning in context, because we’re talking about pornography or sexually inappropriate materials,” state Sen. Clay Yarborough (R-Jacksonville), who sponsored the bill, said during a Tuesday’s floor session. “We have in no way directed these schools or directed the districts to remove every single book off their school shelves. But parents need an opportunity to raise a concern If they have one, and that should be reviewed.”
The Florida House passed HB 1069 by a 77-35 vote in March. DeSantis is widely expected to sign the bill into law.
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#Florida #lawmakers #restrict #pronouns #tackle #book #objections #sweeping #education #bill
( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

May 3, 2023
Goa introduces AI signals to tackle traffic woes, issue e-challans

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Panaji: The Goa government on Wednesday launched the first Artificial Intelligence signal at Merces Junction in North Goa, which is one of the busiest junctions in the coastal state.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, after launching AI signals, said: AI signals will not only help traffic management but will also be helpful for security purposes.
“In future, along with traffic management, it will support the police from a security point of view. We can catch traffic law breakers and others through this system,” he added.
The system is developed and implemented by Beltech AI.
The system shall benefit traffic police to monitor the traffic, issue e-challans and shall benefit with assistance in security purposes.
The Chief Minister said that the system has been employed on pilot basis at Merces junction on a PPP basis.
“The government shall expand the scope of implementation on a PPP basis by collaborating with private investment,” he said.
Sawant appealed to the people to follow traffic rules, which can reduce road accidents and deaths occurring due to it.

Goa PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral said that this AI signal will monitor the movement of traffic from all sides.
“It will detect the traffic and based on it signals will appear,” he said.
He said that the government intends to install AI signals across Goa, so the entire mechanism functions well.
According to officials, the AI can detect emergency vehicles such as ambulances and fire-trucks and automatically clears the road.
The AI is designed in such a way that all the signals in the city and state constantly talk to each other, thus optimising traffic at not only junction level, but city and state level.
AI can also detect vehicles which violate the traffic rules and make the road unsafe for everyone. E-challan is automatically raised to such offenders.
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#Goa #introduces #signals #tackle #traffic #woes #issue #echallans
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

March 15, 2023
Opposition criticises budget, says fails to tackle inflation

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New Delhi: The Opposition criticised the economic policies of the Union government on Wednesday, saying that unemployment and poverty have risen in the country due to it.
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, while initiating the debate on the Union Budget in Lok Sabha, said that the Union government had failed to control inflation.
He added that an “A” grade should be given to the Union Budget, not the one which is given in schools, but the one which stands for Adani, whom it is meant to benefit.
The budget, Gogoi said, had nothing for the common man while all announcements were for a particular corporate group.
The Congress MP said that the government has announced capital expenditure to the tune of Rs 10 lakh crore, of which nearly Rs five lakh crore was for infrastructure projects such as highways, railways and airports.
These assets would be built with public money, which would later be monetised to ‘crony capitalists’, he claimed.
Gogoi said there was no additional allocation for public sector undertakings that pay dividends to the government, nor are there any allocations for the armed forces, he alleged.
The government has not made adequate allocation for the armed forces to deal with the challenge posed by China, he said.

Gogoi claimed that while other countries are decreasing their dependence on China, India’s imports from that country were on the rise.
He added that greater investment was needed in education and manufacturing sectors.
The Lok Sabha was later adjourned for the day due to lack of quorum.
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#Opposition #criticises #budget #fails #tackle #inflation
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 9, 2023
UK deploys emergency response teams to tackle Turkey quake

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London: The UK government said on Monday that it will immediately deploy emergency response teams to Turkey to assist with rescue efforts in the wake of the country’s worst earthquake in decades.
A powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocked Turkey and Syria early on Monday, killing more than 2,300 people. Turkey’s disaster agency said more than 1,500 people died there, while it is estimated that over 800 people were killed in Syria.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said it is deploying a team of search, rescue and medical experts to help on the ground following the 7.8 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes and subsequent aftershocks.
A flight is expected to depart the UK at 4 pm local time and arrive around 9 pm local time in the Turkish city of Gaziantep.
“The UK is sending immediate support to Turkey including a team of 76 search and rescue specialists, equipment and rescue dogs,” said UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly.
“In Syria, the UK-funded White Helmets have mobilised their resources to respond. We stand ready to provide further support as needed,” he said.
The UK said it is providing the support that the Turkish government has asked for.
The UK International Search and Rescue team has specialist search equipment including seismic listening devices, concrete cutting and breaking equipment, propping and shoring tools.

“The British Embassy in Ankara is in close contact with the Turkish authorities to understand how we can best support those on the ground,” said Jill Morris, the British Ambassador Designate to Turkey.
“Our thoughts are with all those affected by the earthquakes today. We pay tribute to the brave Turkish first responders working to save lives,” she said.
In northwest Syria, the UK-aid-funded White Helmets have activated a significant search and rescue response and mobilised all their resources to respond to emerging needs.
The UK government said it is in contact with British humanitarian workers in the affected areas, and stands ready to provide support to any British nationals affected.
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday’s earthquake was the worst the country had seen since 1939, when a powerful tremor in eastern Turkey killed nearly 33,000 people.
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#deploys #emergency #response #teams #tackle #Turkey #quake
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 6, 2023
Florida legislators expected to tackle Disney in special session next week

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Reedy Creek Improvement District is the name of the special district that was created by Florida legislators more than 50 years ago and which has largely been governed by the entertainment conglomerate for more than five decades.
Last year, legislators moved quickly to dissolve Reedy Creek during a special session after Disney officials spoke out against a new law restricting how sexual orientation and gender identity are addressed in public schools. The measure, called “Don’t Say Gay” by its opponents, prohibits educators from leading classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity for students in kindergarten through third grade. LGBTQ+ advocates say the measure could lead students to increased bullying or even suicide.
While DeSantis was not the initial driving force behind the controversial law, he became a champion of it and was instrumental in pushing through the plan to strip Disney of its special status in the aftermath. DeSantis, now seen as likely presidential contender, repeatedly used his battle against Disney on the campaign trail last year as an example of his resistance to “woke” corporations.
But while legislators passed a bill targeting Reedy Creek they did not address ongoing questions about district debts and whether they would be shifted to local taxpayers.
A spokesperson for Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
DeSantis has pledged that a plan would be developed to ensure that taxpayers wouldn’t be responsible for the debts. In early January, the administration said it had come up with a proposal that would have the state control the special district and at same time ensure that Disney would be responsible for any debts previously incurred.
“The corporate kingdom has come to an end,” Taryn Fenske, a spokesperson for DeSantis, said earlier this month.
State Sen. Linda Stewart, an Orlando Democrat whose central Florida district is close to Disney World, said in a message that “we have not received anything yet! Just been hearing rumors for the last couple of weeks.”

DeSantis has relied more and more on special sessions to take care of high priority legislation, a move that guarantees more sustained media coverage — including among friendly conservative outlets — than during the somewhat hectic 60-day regular session where multiple controversial issues may be considered at once. State legislators in Florida are already expected to take up a major expansion of vouchers, a measure to eliminate concealed weapons permitting and possibly new abortion restrictions in the session scheduled to start in March.
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#Florida #legislators #expected #tackle #Disney #special #session #week
( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

February 1, 2023
Lack of ability to tackle Ukraine war reflects UNSC’s ‘dysfunctional’ system: UNGA prez

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New Delhi: The “dysfunctional” system of the UN Security Council has been reflected in the “absurd” situation arising out of one of its permanent members attacking Ukraine and the global body’s failure to address it, UN General Assembly President Csaba Korosi said on Monday.
In an address at a think-tank, Korosi called for urgent reform of the UNSC to reflect the changing balance of global power and economic heft of various countries and criticized the slow process that was started around 17 years back to bring the changes.
India has been strongly demanding permanent membership in the UNSC considering the size of its population and role in international affairs. The current permanent members of the UNSC are China, France, Russia, the UK and the US.
Addressing a group of diplomats, strategic affairs experts, and academicians at the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), the UNGA president also wondered why there is still no agreement on a text to take forward the reform process.
“Does it have a time frame? No, I think it does not. Does it have a negotiated text, no it does not…Have you ever seen a negotiated process that has no text to negotiate? Have you ever seen a negotiating process that has no clear-cut timeframe for when to deliver,” he asked.
“Why the member states cannot do it? Because the interests are very much divided, and for some, it is more preferable to see the current dysfunctional stage than to embark on a reform,” he said.
The Hungarian diplomat, who is currently serving as the President of the 77th United Nations General Assembly, commended India’s call during its recent membership of the UN Security Council, for peace in Ukraine and its humanitarian aid for people hit by the conflict.
Korosi said the war in Ukraine has caused untold suffering and displacements and “unleashed” an energy and food crisis across the globe.

The president of the UN General Assembly, on a three-day visit to India also lauded New Delhi for sending medical aid and Covid-19 vaccines to a large number of countries to help them deal with the pandemic.
Korosi also complimented India for the safe evacuation of its citizens from Ukraine after Russia started its invasion of that country in February last year.
On the reform of the UN Security Council, the UNGA President urged the member states to make compromises and consider even making partial agreements under a step-by-step approach to reform of the UNSC. “Otherwise it will be very very difficult.”
Korosi identified the Ukraine war and lack of agreement on a text for taking forward the reform process.
“There are two major problems that we are facing. One was brought up by the war in Ukraine. The Security Council was created in 1945 to be the prime responsible organ for catering to international peace and security, to make sure that there would be no more wars,” he said.
The aim of the UNSC was to avert war and large-scale destruction, and, therefore, extraordinary powers have been placed into the hands of the Council, he said.
“What if the Security Council members, one of them, a permanent member that has those extraordinary powers including the Veto power, is the one attacking its neighbor? It created a situation where the Security Council is incapable of addressing this issue,” Korosi said.
“Since the very beginning of the war in Ukraine, the Security Council has not been able to take any decision on the war on Ukraine. So it is an absurd situation which is describing the dysfunction of the Council,” he said.
The UNGA president millions of people who were expecting the UN to deliver were frustrated by the UNSC’s approach towards the Ukraine crisis.
“If millions of people were expecting the Security Council to make sure that wars would not be repeated, they would be frustrated. I can understand that,” he said.
Korosi said the composition and the working method of the UNSC were based on the situation in 1945-46 following the Second World War.
“Since then, much has changed. The world economy has changed, the balance of power in the world has changed.. so it is absolutely understandable that the countries and the leaders of the world are more and more impatiently demanding that the Security Council should be reformed,” he said.
The UNGA president said the reform process can be taken forward if the member states want.
“It is up to the member states to come up with some kind of shared understanding. Some kind of compromise. I very strongly asked the member states to think very hard. Do you want to spend another 17 years on a process or do you want to see results as soon as possible.” he said.
“If they like to go for the second (option), they will have to make compromises, they will have to make agreements. Maybe partial agreements. Maybe a step-by-step approach. Otherwise, it will be very very difficult,” she said.
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#Lack #ability #tackle #Ukraine #war #reflects #UNSCs #dysfunctional #system #UNGA #prez
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

January 30, 2023