Leading Green Party councillors from across the country have today written to Grant Shapps, the new Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, to pause the Net Zero Review ordered under Liz Truss. They have described the current terms for the review as ‘a thinly disguised attempt to prioritise profit making over action on the climate emergency’.
“The terms of reference for the review were clearly written to support ‘growth at any cost’. The review as it stands could result in the ditching or delaying of environmental commitments, undermining our national commitments, but also weakening our ability as council leaders to transform our areas” said Catherine Braun, Leader of Stroud District Council.
Douglas Johnson, who leads on housing policy for Sheffield City Council, added “we desperately need long term investment in insulation and renewable energy to bring down bills and to help eliminate greenhouse gases. We must also decarbonise our transport. Our councils stand ready to lead and have already made headway despite a lack of government support. So, a review of progress would be welcome, but not on the terms outlined under the last Prime Minister”.
The review Call for Evidence closes this week, but Green Party councillors believe the questions were skewed to support a ‘Trussonomics’ agenda. In their address to the Secretary of State they say: “You can quickly display a commitment to the environment by ditching this wrong-headed and contradictory consultation and replacing it with a genuine engagement with civil society, business and local government on how to accelerate decarbonisation and adaptation in ways that deliver a fair transition for our communities away from fossil fuels.”
The letter can be read in full here.