Angela Rayner on Climate Change
TL;DR
Angela Rayner strongly advocates for integrating climate action into policy, particularly through planning reform, education, and worker safety measures.
Key Points
Pledged to make the global climate emergency a core element of the school curriculum from primary school onwards when she was Shadow Education Secretary in May 2019.
Received correspondence urging her to establish statutory duties on climate and nature within the Devolution White Paper framework by February 2025.
Has a 'Good' rating from VoteClimate for supporting action on climate across 14 of 19 identified relevant parliamentary votes since 2015.
Summary
Angela Rayner's core position on climate change centres on embedding environmental considerations across government policy, evidenced by her focus on planning reform and education. As Shadow Education Secretary in 2019, she pledged that a Labour government would make the climate crisis a core element of the school curriculum from primary level onwards to equip young people with the necessary knowledge and skills for green technology jobs. Following the election, she was urged by environmental groups to legally link the planning system to the Climate Change Act, ensuring every planning decision supports the UK's climate and nature goals rather than hindering them. This suggests a view that economic development and environmental protection must be integrated.
Contextually, her position extends to workers' rights in relation to climate impacts, such as extreme weather. She has called for urgent guidance on safe indoor working temperatures and for employers to allow flexible working during heatwaves, drawing on her past experience in hot working conditions. Furthermore, environmental coalitions have actively engaged with her in her ministerial role, encouraging her to prioritize nature recovery and emissions reduction within planning reforms by protecting designated nature sites and mandating nature-friendly design in new developments. This engagement suggests that climate and nature are key components of her ministerial remit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Angela Rayner adopts a strong position in favour of tackling climate change, viewing it as a defining feature of adult lives that requires urgent action. She has committed to embedding climate education within the school curriculum and integrating nature and climate goals into planning reform. This indicates a belief that climate action must be central to policy and development.
She has highlighted the link between climate change and occupational health, specifically calling for government guidance on safe indoor working temperatures. Furthermore, she has argued that employers must be required to allow staff flexibility during extreme heat events to keep people safe. This shows a concern for climate adaptation at the workplace level.
The data suggests a positive voting record, with Angela Rayner voting in favour of climate action in a majority of the relevant parliamentary votes tracked since 2015. Her voting record includes support for measures like the prohibition on burning peat in upland areas and strengthening climate change risk considerations in pension schemes.
Sources8
Labour pledges to put climate emergency on school curriculum
UKGBC reacts to Angela Rayner's planning announcement
Stop working in the heat? If only it were that simple, Angela Rayner...
Making Devolution Work for Climate and Nature
Ms Angela Rayner MP - VoteClimate
It’s like a Victoria sponge with the jam missing — Rights Community Action (Copy)
Changing the nature of government rhetoric and policy about nature
Supporting the climate and nature mission through planning reform
* This is not an exhaustive list of sources.