If everyone said this, little would happen

Collectively, countries emitting less than 2% each, account for roughly 36% of global emissions., bigger than China. If all of them used the same excuse, global action would fail. 

Shared problems require shared action
One household represents only a tiny fraction of total water use, yet hosepipe bans still matter. No one voter expects to change an election, yet most people agree that voting matters.

Britain is not just “any” 1%

The UK helped build the fossil-fuel age, benefiting greatly from its coal, oil and gas reserves. UK cumulative emissions since the Industrial Revolution add to 4.5% of the global total, making us one of the biggest emitters, particularly if we include all the manufacturing we have offshored. We cannot credibly argue that we bear almost no responsibility for helping address the consequences.

What Britain does matters, and leading by example is the best way to influence others
The UK still has outsized influence through finance, diplomacy and culture. If it became the first western nation to take the urgent economy-wide action needed, cutting bills by funding mass retrofitting of homes and a rapid expansion in public transport and active travel, other nations will follow. The genie will be out of the bottle.

This is about protecting Britain too

Climate and nature breakdown already affects food prices, flooding, infrastructure, insurance and national security. Taking action is not charity - it is self-protection. For example, insulating homes can dramatically cut wasted energy, but also protects against heat. And moving faster to renewables will reduce our unwise dependence on fossil fuel dictators.

The real question

The issue is not whether Britain can solve the crisis alone. Of course it cannot.

It is whether we help shape the future or become dependent on countries that do.

More on this in an article by scientist Hannah Ritchie including this graphic: