Thousands invited to join UK citizens' assembly

Letters were being sent to 30,000 households across the UK inviting people to join a citizens' assembly on climate change, the media reported on Saturday.

The invitees to the assembly UK have been selected at random from across the the country. From those who respond, 110 people will be chosen as a representative sample of the population, the BBC reported.

They will meet over four weekends from late January 2020 in Birmingham, and will discuss topics ranging from transport to household energy use.

Rachel Reeves, chair of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee, one of six select committees who commissioned the climate assembly, said a clear roadmap was needed to achieve this goal.

"Finding solutions which are equitable and have public support will be crucial," she said.

"Parliament needs to work with the people and with government to address the challenge of climate change."

A citizens' assembly has been a key demand of the environmental campaign group Extinction Rebellion, whose protests caused widespread disruption this year.

The group said they welcomed this as a first step, but warned that the assembly should be focussing on cutting carbon emissions to net zero by 2025 not 2050.

Spokesperson Linda Doyle said: "Waiting 30 years to reach zero net carbon emissions is a death sentence to people around the world and in the UK - it gives us a higher chance of breaching irreversible tipping points as the climate breaks down and it only serves short term 'business as usual'."

Citizens' assemblies have been used in a number of countries around the world, the BBC said.

In Ireland, a panel of 99 people was established in 2016 to look at a range of political questions, including abortion.

They recommended that the country should overturn its ban and suggested a referendum, which went on to support repeal.

In Canada and the Netherlands, the approach has been used to discuss electoral reform.