How the 'lobbyists' 38 Degrees operates.

Yesterday, a recipient of prepared emails that 38 Degrees send out to constituents all over Britain including a pre-prepared email for onward transmission to MPs forwarded me a copy. In the interests of transparancy, I decided to copy it onto my blog site. I have received about 30 emails written in the terms which 38 Degrees suggested. Make of it what you will.
Dear XXXXXX,

It’s bad news. Yesterday MPs voted against including a clean energy target in the Energy Bill. [1]

The vote was painfully close - if just 12 MPs had voted differently, we would have won. [2] It was edge-of-the-seat stuff. Yesterday, it felt too close to call. But ultimately, we just didn’t have enough votes.

It’s sad when we lose. Especially when it’s on something as important as protecting our planet. But we fought valiantly and gave it our all, and today we can be proud as well as disappointed.

A year ago, the prospect of so many MPs voting for a clean energy target was inconceivable. Our work, alongside our friends at Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, changed that.

Together we sent tens of thousands of emails and tweets, and made hundreds of phone calls to our MPs. We also ramped up the pressure on wavering MPs with adverts in local newspapers, thousands of leaflets through doors and many face-to-face meetings. It’s thanks to all we did together that so many MPs switched their votes, and turned out yesterday in support.

This is not where we wanted to be today. But there’s still hope that we’ll secure the target we need. The Energy Bill will now go to the House of Lords to be debated again. They have the power to include a clean energy target. They are much more likely to do so because it was such a close vote in the House of Commons.

Sadly, your MP, Glyn Davies, didn’t vote the right way. Whether it was because he voted with his political party, or he wanted to back dirty fossil fuels or for some other reason, he backed George Osborne at the expense of the environment and against the wishes of his voters.

It’s important that we let those who voted against the clean energy target know that we’re disappointed in them. It will show that we’re watching them, so in the future they’ll know there are consequences for their actions. And next time there’s a big climate vote, they’ll be under no doubt from the outset where their voters stand.

Could you email Glyn Davies now? Click here to him know that you’re disappointed in how he voted.

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/mp-voted-against

So, overall, a disappointing result. Sometimes it can be tempting at moments like this to feel like giving up. But we know we did our best. And we know that if we keep working together, there will be chances in the future to turn it around. So let’s take a moment to give ourselves a pat on the back. We'll keep going, because we know it's the right thing to do. And because we know that together we can make a difference.

Thanks for everything you do,

Susannah, Becky, James and the 38 Degrees team

PS. Campaigns like this one don’t cost the earth, but they cost something. 38 Degrees relies entirely on donations from members like you, giving one-off donations or small regular sums of £2 or £3 per week.

Would you consider making a donation? Just 2 or 3 pounds a week makes a massive difference. It only takes a few minutes to set up, and it means that we can pull together massive campaigns like this over the days, weeks, months and years to come. Please click here to get started:

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/start-a-direct-debit/?ref=ebillmpagainst