A 12-year-old girl from Bristol has urged Boris Johnson to study a GCSE in geography so he can be “educated” on climate change.
Nico McCrimmon, of Montpelier, has sent a letter to the UK prime minister alongside a revision guide and a copy of the book ‘Global Warming For Dummies’.
Nico said: “Because of his past voting record he does not know the severity of the problem.”
This week thousands of children across England and Wales will receive their GCSE grades.
Nico thought it would therefore be a timely occasion to press the Conservative leader to go back to school.
She said: “He needs to do his GCSE because he does not know about global warming and he needs to be educated on it.”
Mr Johnson has “almost always” voted against measures to prevent climate change, according to the website ‘They Work For You’.
Nico, who is going into Year 8 at Cotham School, has starred in a video produced on behalf of the UK Student Climate Network, the group behind the school climate strikes inspired by Greta Thunberg.
The short film, set for release on Thursday (August 22), sees her airing a message to Mr Johnson.
Nico told Bristol Live her concerns about the environment have led to her reducing the amount of plastic she uses.
For instance, she and her family now own metal straws and buy loose fruit and vegetables.
Mr Johnson’s perceived lack of environmental sensitivity came in for criticism earlier this summer from scientist David King, who served under Mr Johnson as the UK special representative for climate change when Mr Johnson was foreign secretary.
Professor King told the Guardian that Mr Johnson oversaw a 60 per cent cut in his team of climate attachés across the globe.
He added: “During his time in the Foreign Office, Boris Johnson never made a speech on climate change…”
Bristol Live approached Number 10 Downing Street for a comment in response to Nico’s letter to Mr Johnson.
A government spokesperson said the UK “leads the world” on climate change action, having committed to reduce net emissions to zero by 2050.
The spokesperson said: “We have cleaned up our power sector, cut emissions faster than any other G20 country while growing the economy, and set a strong example for other countries to follow.
“We are now the frontrunners to host the UN’s major climate summit COP26 in November 2020, driving action on climate change around the world.
“We know there is more to do and we’ll set out plans in the coming months to tackle emissions from aviation, agriculture and transport.”
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