CLIMATE CAMPAIGNERS’ HSBC CALL

Christian Aid supporters from parish churches in Scotland have visited nearby HSBC branches to demand the bank stop financing fossil fuels.

Charity supporters from Cambusbarron Parish Church visited HSBC in Stirling, while campaigners from Queensferry Parish Church went to the Princes Street branch in Edinburgh. In each case they delivered a letter addressed to the bank’s CEO and a petition. The visits were part of a national action by Christian Aid aiming to visit every branch in the UK, calling on the global bank to ensure its activity is in keeping with the Paris Agreement’s target of keeping global warming well under 2˚C.

Liz Walkington from Cambusbarron Parish Church said: “Climate change is making life even harder for people around the world living in extreme poverty. As one of the world’s biggest banks we are concerned that HSBC continues to fund coal power projects in Vietnam, Indonesia and Bangladesh. We’ve not done anything like this before, but we wanted to play our part in Christian Aid’s ‘Big Shift’ campaign to visit every branch in the UK during Lent. There are ten branches in Scotland and we really hope our letter handed in at the Stirling branch reaches their CEO John Flint and has an impact.”

Lesley MacKenzie from Queensferry Parish Church said: “We decided to join Christian Aid’s Big Shift campaign because we feel very concerned about the damage climate change is doing throughout the world, especially to those already living in poverty.”

Diane Green, Campaigns Officer with Christian Aid Scotland, said: “Leading scientists such as the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change tell us the situation is becoming critical. We must do everything we can to make sure that those who are financing dirty fossil fuels are held to account.

“HSBC has agreed to invest $100billion in sustainable financing by 2025. This is fantastic. But it is still investing in fossil fuels which are destroying habitats and lives.

“We want HSBC to use its position as a major bank to lead the way and close the gap between its rhetoric and its actions.”