U.K. members of Parliament called on their own pension fund to divest all of its investments related to fossil fuels, during a debate Wednesday.
The cross-party group of MPs asked the trustee of the £700 million ($910 million) Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund, Darlington, England, to disclose its investments in carbon-intensive sectors and commit to eliminating fossil-fuel investments.
Ed Davey, Liberal Democrat and a member of Parliament for Kingston and Surbiton, said in an emailed comment: "Declaring a climate emergency is the easy part; now we need strong action to make net zero emissions a reality. By continuing to invest in fossil fuel firms, we are fueling the fire of climate breakdown — and risking another financial crash."
Caroline Lucas, Green Party member and an MP for Brighton Pavilion, said: "The worst impacts of climate breakdown are being felt by those who have done the least to cause the problem, as shown by the devastating impacts of Cyclone Idai in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe."
"It is morally unacceptable that we are helping to fund this by investing in fossil fuel companies." added Ms. Lucas, who has been pressuring the pension fund to divest its holdings since 2014.
In response, trustees of the pension fund said they would develop a climate change investment policy. The fund currently holds shares worth £11.7 million in BP and £11 million in Royal Dutch Shell.
