Agenda item

Councillor Tagg as Cabinet Member for Environment, Infrastructure and Climate Change, presented the report which contained the Councils Climate Change Annual Report (2021) and the draft Climate Change Action Plan 2 (CCAP 2).  It was explained that the documents would be presented to Cabinet in October and would be officially launched to Members at a Member event in November 2021.

James Cartwright (Interim Sustainability Manager) and Clive Thompson (Assistant Director for Connectivity and Sustainability) also attended the meeting.

The Climate Change Annual report summarised the Councils five priority themes and the work undertaken in these areas to date.  This included work with Local Partners and District/Borough Councils and the various programmes in place to react to local demand and challenges. The plan was a five-year plan and time lines were being developed.    

The following specific areas of Climate Change were discussed:

·       Air quality – school transport was specifically mentioned and the need to change parents behaviour and increase their travel options for transporting children to school.  The Committee was informed that the ‘Empty seats policy’ would be added to the Prosperous Overview and Scrutiny Committee for future consideration. 

·       Wind turbines and the need for planning changes.  A sustainability Board was being established to bring together all the District/Borough Councils, Partners and local community organisations to create an ideas and productive /combined working network approach.

·       Water recycling and the use of rain water for household waste disposal.

·       Car charging points.  It was felt that this should be a priority.  Both on street and car park charging points were needed.  The need to work with partners to come up with solutions and learn from other areas who have developed test pilots was essential.

The Committee felt that one of the challenges was collaboration with partners, and asked what had been done to date and what targets had been met?  The Cabinet Member informed the Committee that Keele University had organised three workshops over the last nine months.  The general feedback had been positive and all Local Authorities had expressed a willingness to work together.   There was discussion of setting up a Joint Sustainability Board which needed to be actioned by Keele University. 

When asked about the cost of the action plan and if there was a budget to fund its delivery, the Cabinet Member informed the Committee that there was a Climate Change Fund which would enable officers to develop the plan and future budgets would have to be aligned to meet the required action.  There was also funding for small projects and Government funding for specific initiatives.   Members were reminded that there was a Members Climate Action Fund, the remit of which could be widened to enable more engagement with the community.  It was reported that the budget for 2021/22 was c£0.5m

It was felt that although the targets for some priorities was 2050, there was a need to deliver earlier if possible.  Members wanted to see a document with detailed, measurable timelines and figurative analysis in it, which could be used to hold the Executive to account.   There was concern that the report did not contain this information or details on how progress was to be measured.

Members were also concerned that the Plan lacked the Councils role of influencing and how we can actively persuade others to adopt changes as quickly as possible.

The Cabinet Member thanked the Committee for their comments and suggestions and asked if they would establish a small working Group to look at the Climate Change agenda and share their views/recommendation with him in order to move the plan forward.

RESOLVED:

a)   That the Climate Change Annual Report (2021) and the progress that has been made to date be noted and the comments made by the Committee, listed above, be included in the report taken forward.

b)  That the draft Climate Change Action Plan 2 (CCAP 2) be noted and referred to formal Cabinet for approval in October 2021.

c)   That the Committee establish a small Working Group on Climate Change – Chaired by the Vice Chair for Overview, Councillor Wileman.  The Membership of the Working Group to come from this Committee.