Yuval Harari is right to ask us to plan for the long-term as we think about what kind of planet we will inhabit after COVID-19 (The world after coronavirus, Life & Arts, FT Weekend, 21 March). The pandemic requires immediate global action, and governments are now responding with emergency measures to cope during this escalating crisis.
Crucial though these measures are, we must not lose sight of addressing the longer-term risks – the climate emergency, unchecked technological change and future pandemics – which Toby Ord tells us add up to a one in six chance that human life won’t see the century out (When things fall apart, Life & Arts, FT Weekend, 21 March).
Lord Bird’s Future Generations Bill is the UK’s opportunity to systematically address these issues. It passed its second reading in the Lords on 13 March and now moves to committee stage. On 24 March, Caroline Lucas MP will also present a cross-party case for a UK Future Generations Act to transform how we think, plan and budget by embedding sustainability at the heart of policymaking.
The post-Brexit era offers a chance for us to weave the golden thread of long-term thinking into our communities, businesses and governments. Wales is pioneering this approach, with their Future Generations Commissioner and preventative budgeting, and now is the time for other nations to follow.
The eyes of future generations are upon us. Let’s be the good ancestors our descendants deserve. Let’s act today for tomorrow, and work together to level up opportunity between current and future generations.
Lord Bird (Crossbench)
Lord Aberdare (Crossbench)
Baroness Afshar (Crossbench)
Baroness Andrews (Labour)
Lord Balfe (Conservative)
Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green)
Baroness Benjamin (Liberal Democrat)
Baroness Blackstone (Labour Independent)
Baroness Blower (Labour)
Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative)
Lord Browne of Ladyton (Labour)
Lord Cashman (Labour)
Lord Bishop of Coventry
Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat)
Lord Collins of Highbury (Labour)
Lord Crisp (Crossbench)
Lord Giddens (Labour)
Lord Hastings of Scarisbrick (Crossbench)
Lord Howarth of Newport (Labour)
Lord Hunt of Chesterton (Labour)
Lord Hylton (Crossbench)
Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green)
Lord Judd (Labour)
Lord Mackay of Clashfern (Conservative)
Baroness Massey of Darwen (Labour)
Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour Co-operative)
Baroness McGregor-Smith (Conservative)
Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer (Liberal Democrat)
Lord Newby (Liberal Democrat)
Lord Bishop of Oxford
Baroness Parminter (Liberal Democrat)
Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Conservative)
Baroness Tyler of Enfield (Liberal Democrat)
Baroness Uddin (Non-affiliated)
Baroness Watkins of Tavistock (Crossbench)
Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru)
Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Labour)
Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative)
