tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71960594820612213392024-03-05T21:04:31.254+00:00Councillor Andrew CooperA blog by Green Party Councillor Andrew Cooper about Green Politics, action on Climate Change, Kirklees Council and our activity to improve the local and global environment (and also anything that I fancy talking about)
Promoted and published by A Cooper, 76 Brockholes Lane, Holmfirth HD9 7EBAndrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.comBlogger660125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-5494823248645485642024-02-13T21:00:00.000+00:002024-02-13T21:00:51.015+00:00 Greens welcome new scheme to protect Lockwood from flooding<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAdbCl7udD6JBhQBC8OZPb-EiEnZRXsiICzXBHLKW5Fs3U1gVH4BsD6miit7hUfwPVFBwP-DZdN0-b6epzjmBZoZV9ZK0_E43o31LdNmOvEnHhlDLiSXJN734pqKL0ZoEK17rDMx0KE7cB66oYTZykbOM3qyadcXVcasuQv0t1z0m1RnqSdEqu1OELApNB/s1311/AC%20Queens%20Mill%20Rd%20Flood%201.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="689" data-original-width="1311" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAdbCl7udD6JBhQBC8OZPb-EiEnZRXsiICzXBHLKW5Fs3U1gVH4BsD6miit7hUfwPVFBwP-DZdN0-b6epzjmBZoZV9ZK0_E43o31LdNmOvEnHhlDLiSXJN734pqKL0ZoEK17rDMx0KE7cB66oYTZykbOM3qyadcXVcasuQv0t1z0m1RnqSdEqu1OELApNB/w439-h231/AC%20Queens%20Mill%20Rd%20Flood%201.JPG" width="439" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cllr Andrew Cooper on the scene in February 2022</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Newsome Ward Green Party Councillor Andrew Cooper has welcomed a new scheme to protect businesses in Lockwood from flooding.</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-fb9b071f-7fff-865d-6057-5a9f789ead13"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">.In West Yorkshire approximately 37,000 residential properties and 15,000 commercial properties fall within a flood zone. Lockwood is one of those areas.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Councillor Cooper, who is a member of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority Climate Change, Energy and Environment Committee, that approved the scheme said,</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“Back in February 2022 a number of businesses down Albert Street and Queens Mill Road were flooded. I remember it well as I was on the scene at the time redirecting traffic away from flooded roads. Several businesses in the area were badly affected and some businesses were out of action for several months</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The half million pound scheme funded by West Yorkshire Combined Authority will install 2 pipes to redirect flood water back into the River Holme further downstream and reduce the risk of flooding for 28 businesses.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Heavy rainfall events are becoming more frequent due to the impacts of climate change. So we need to invest in schemes which make homes and businesses more resilient to climate change.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj76F5iPGA7gqnemkBL82ZNFOPLcUsZ3dWXQEDUuicysvyyNElcA5s78d8dj9IERulJrQN-4z-FbkeRXB1VYWKbfTBqt8iAC3melxhU_b1l9mOEDMiUfXyEMAEN4cRq_nVyeKcr38YDcwXHHJJxYwrpCtOPrCvVc7WimeiUURGCd0pNBlpWifkCoBmJgnZI/s1857/Queens%20Mill%20Rd%20Flooding%20Feb%202022.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="858" data-original-width="1857" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj76F5iPGA7gqnemkBL82ZNFOPLcUsZ3dWXQEDUuicysvyyNElcA5s78d8dj9IERulJrQN-4z-FbkeRXB1VYWKbfTBqt8iAC3melxhU_b1l9mOEDMiUfXyEMAEN4cRq_nVyeKcr38YDcwXHHJJxYwrpCtOPrCvVc7WimeiUURGCd0pNBlpWifkCoBmJgnZI/w533-h247/Queens%20Mill%20Rd%20Flooding%20Feb%202022.jpeg" width="533" /></a><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">References</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">See Page 64</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://westyorkshire.moderngov.co.uk/documents/g1300/Public%20reports%20pack%2013th-Feb-2024%2014.00%20Climate%20Energy%20and%20Environment%20Committee.pdf?T=10" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(Public Pack)Agenda Document for Climate, Energy and Environment Committee, 13/02/2024 14:00 (moderngov.co.uk)</span></a></p><br /></span>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-61471279688134323652023-12-29T15:46:00.006+00:002023-12-29T15:47:44.508+00:00Greens run New Year’s Day Bus Service for a record 31st year.<p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDdQqRixsiz6C1O6qUZCGlwafTlqxTgt57VosxsKytNKds2SeuOX06SKNZSteYr2ONHGgmTQVGjuqonvih_w4JyXlBWNWixJLthSuw6Woi9ro7QUXlKZsakL1kECY08lNh2SSQdrI6anUSWnjNLwQPF4omr4waNW1uvP4rONbvZjIvcykfJ9wQ2tpoUXRH/s1144/2023%20New%20Years%20Day%20Bus%20Andrew%20&%20Sue.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="858" data-original-width="1144" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDdQqRixsiz6C1O6qUZCGlwafTlqxTgt57VosxsKytNKds2SeuOX06SKNZSteYr2ONHGgmTQVGjuqonvih_w4JyXlBWNWixJLthSuw6Woi9ro7QUXlKZsakL1kECY08lNh2SSQdrI6anUSWnjNLwQPF4omr4waNW1uvP4rONbvZjIvcykfJ9wQ2tpoUXRH/s320/2023%20New%20Years%20Day%20Bus%20Andrew%20&%20Sue.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; text-align: left; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> Sue & Andrew with the minibus</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Newsome Ward Green Councillors are running a free, volunteer run bus service on New Year’s Day. </span><p></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-7025708e-7fff-cb54-3f1e-118c757d9617"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The bus service runs from Berry Brow, through Newsome village, the Town Centre and up to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary. It has run for 31 years with only one break in 2020 due to the pandemic. Newsome Green Party Councillors Andrew Cooper, Sue Lee-Richards and Karen Allison all volunteer on the service. Sue’s husband Gideon Richards also helps with the driving.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Councillor Andrew Cooper said,</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“We never thought, when we began the service, that it would still be going all these years later. We used to run a service on Boxing Day until services were reintroduced a few years ago. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOGK_Rq1K92w0jFWVXGdhkYOgZFgIUupKPtFgVTWMKERvNyfLwTdQFkcJHl9Vn3o4z2hWV3J3JDTNmFGbhjvTzOP2ex9LEu-tblHWCqn2O2zP68-jhkvRJuSxotc8-gN5EnpgxCh_yL_O-81jbJh2ZHyLnTWb5-07bOpRqkHmFutUiEEwx7IjiItG58SUL/s1144/2023%20New%20Years%20Day%20Bus%20Andrew%20Karen%20Timetable.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="858" data-original-width="1144" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOGK_Rq1K92w0jFWVXGdhkYOgZFgIUupKPtFgVTWMKERvNyfLwTdQFkcJHl9Vn3o4z2hWV3J3JDTNmFGbhjvTzOP2ex9LEu-tblHWCqn2O2zP68-jhkvRJuSxotc8-gN5EnpgxCh_yL_O-81jbJh2ZHyLnTWb5-07bOpRqkHmFutUiEEwx7IjiItG58SUL/s320/2023%20New%20Years%20Day%20Bus%20Andrew%20Karen%20Timetable.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Andrew & Karen putting up timetables</td></tr></tbody></table><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“People really appreciate the service. It helps them see relatives in hospital, do some shopping and nip out to see friends for a drink or a meal. Sometimes we pick people standing at bus stops who have no idea that there are no bus services running on New Year’s Day.</span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“Our New Year’s Bus service is something we look forward to each year. There ‘s always a new story each year of someone we have helped who would otherwise be stuck or having to pay for an expensive taxi. We are grateful to Kirklees Council who now loan us the minibus for the day.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Timetable for the bus service</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPDtD7zQUZPOd5NW8sXZC8tVQ0BoHBcqd9cwW2Ztx40J_gBpQDChFZEwFEQCIRrDQqOy0BntwnSqFJRd_ZA4Xl37V5sknV8sZFdKKREowm9W-2WpMBo7o6RbPgQRmvtsIftMIAniWwkW773eUF-_iLrsVlbwDg9DFfiTVRihM9e2zzv8qf-CUchNQqHseU/s1200/New%20Years%20Day%20Bus%20timetable.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="1200" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPDtD7zQUZPOd5NW8sXZC8tVQ0BoHBcqd9cwW2Ztx40J_gBpQDChFZEwFEQCIRrDQqOy0BntwnSqFJRd_ZA4Xl37V5sknV8sZFdKKREowm9W-2WpMBo7o6RbPgQRmvtsIftMIAniWwkW773eUF-_iLrsVlbwDg9DFfiTVRihM9e2zzv8qf-CUchNQqHseU/w640-h232/New%20Years%20Day%20Bus%20timetable.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p></span>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-62853542503779357512023-12-28T14:49:00.001+00:002023-12-28T14:55:06.691+00:00The Newsome Centre - Nearly there!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6yfYfeJLhBOZLUTahCnxJ4qh0YTrU-IP_gE-UfRDeIAPqX7WOSgkiOhghSTyX7b7AXXPrlvbwg4X_v-7b31sOrjYvPCh0X5HQH98zhSgmFvEgvChAYA11omQuj4DdHfLetlEgW4s3lpBvro7xlMtesqBcP76QqFhSqJZi1vrlTUUHpYSCv3z-yqG82HJ/s4032/Church%20and%20Councillors.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6yfYfeJLhBOZLUTahCnxJ4qh0YTrU-IP_gE-UfRDeIAPqX7WOSgkiOhghSTyX7b7AXXPrlvbwg4X_v-7b31sOrjYvPCh0X5HQH98zhSgmFvEgvChAYA11omQuj4DdHfLetlEgW4s3lpBvro7xlMtesqBcP76QqFhSqJZi1vrlTUUHpYSCv3z-yqG82HJ/s320/Church%20and%20Councillors.png" width="320" /></a></div>It was around 3 years ago that I and Councillors Karen Allison and Sue Lee-Richards were approached by the Church of England regarding the possibility of us taking on St John the Evangelist Church, in Newsome, for community use. It should have been a difficult choice. Taking on an old building with all the costs and upkeep that came with it. But it was a choice we couldn't walk away from. A large building in the centre of Newsome with huge potential for events, conferences and a community cafe, something the village lacks. A place where people could hold celebrations and come together as a community. We couldn't ignore that vision and started making plans.<p></p><p>We established a Community Benefit Society as the body we would need to purchase and develop the centre. We commissioned local architects, One17, to help us realise our vision for the building and to assess the maintenance and improvments we will need to make to the building. We have raised funding to pay for the building and carry out some essential repairs. We have secured planning permission from Kirklees for change of use from a place of worship to a community centre with ancilliary cafe. That is the short version of the story. There have been some frustrations and bumps in the road along the way.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcI92WuXoZ0awFi7w5-yGv15K2zeKdjhOwH27Kwg-EWcY4xvY08kmQ1azFszRi-beofhnMvFBgpQO7-VPzLzvv5ljBcWZTe5ayg59q2nOEEcP4YVpaknYzuKWBVD9MXpLIBVu9KNa9PZqP6Z1CJ7EPFe7JW0YH3n4Uuo0F3qtpmC1F7FcrEh_HJ20md21M/s3000/newsome-centre-stacked.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcI92WuXoZ0awFi7w5-yGv15K2zeKdjhOwH27Kwg-EWcY4xvY08kmQ1azFszRi-beofhnMvFBgpQO7-VPzLzvv5ljBcWZTe5ayg59q2nOEEcP4YVpaknYzuKWBVD9MXpLIBVu9KNa9PZqP6Z1CJ7EPFe7JW0YH3n4Uuo0F3qtpmC1F7FcrEh_HJ20md21M/s320/newsome-centre-stacked.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />We know that getting ownership of the building is only the beginning of the journey. The roof will need replacing. We have a variety of tarpaulins and buckets collecting rainwater from various points in the roof. The kitchen and toilet block are in a very poor state and we need a small extension and a refit to bring it up to modern standards. There's a lot more that we have planned including upgrading the heating and insulation, creating meeting rooms, removing the pews to give us a usable halls for dancing, exercise clases and events.<p></p><p>We have got local people together to discuss our vision for the building and to get their ideas and input. As local Councillors we have initiated saving the building for the community but now we will need the help of the community to ensure it has a sustainable long term future. There is a lot of work to do but it will be worth it.</p><p>If you can donate to our Crowdfunder it would be really appreciated</p><p><a href="https://www.spacehive.com/the-newsome-centre-phase-2/pledge">Make a pledge to The Newsome Centre (Phase 2) Proposal on Spacehive</a></p><p>.</p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-71742843334408634392023-12-01T10:14:00.005+00:002023-12-10T20:31:13.654+00:00Motion to Kirklees Council - Permanent Ceasefire in Gaza<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">That this Council </span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-43b6328c-7fff-def1-61d8-1f78be1584cb" style="font-family: arial;"><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">notes:</span></p></li></ol><br /><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">That East Jerusalem, the West Bank, the Golan Heights and Gaza are illegally occupied by Israel; and that Gaza has been subject to 16 years of blockade</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">That the Israeli government has been </span><span style="color: #444746; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">withholding essential resources from Gaza and bombing civilian targets, such as schools, hospitals, and media organisations all of which constitute war crimes</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">That under Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, genocide is defined as certain acts “committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group” and that, under Article I, the UK has confirmed that genocide is a crime under international law which it undertakes to prevent and to punish</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">the UK, at the UN Security Council on 18 October 2023, refused to vote for “humanitarian pauses” to deliver lifesaving aid to millions in Gaza</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">The deep concern expressed about the conflict in Gaza by thousands of people in Kirklees.</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">The impact of conflict on displacing people from their homes makes them asylum seekers and refugees who then understandably flee to safer countries like the UK.</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">The Hamas attacks on October 7th when hundreds of innocent Israeli civilians and soldiers were killed and taken hostage.</span></p></li></ol><br /><ol start="2" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">believes:</span></p></li></ol><br /><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">All atrocities committed against civilians by Hamas or the Israeli Defence Force must be condemned and investigated </span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">All forms of racism, including anti-Palestinian racism, antisemitism and Islamophobia have no place in Kirklees and condemns any attacks on Palestinian, Jewish or Muslim people</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">All political leaders have a responsibility to try to prevent genocide, such as the annihilation of the civilian population of Gaza </span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">That Hamas should release all hostages.</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">The state of Israel is enacting a system recognised as apartheid by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, B’tselem and the South African government</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">The</span><span style="color: #444746; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;"> only way to secure peace between Israelis and Palestinians is for a just political settlement based on the end of the occupation of Palestinian territories and an end to discriminatory apartheid policies, settler colonialism and ethnic cleansing</span></p></li></ol><br /><ol start="3" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">And therefore resolves to:</span></p></li></ol><br /><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">Ask the Chief Executive to write to the UK government, requesting it to </span></p></li><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-roman; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">call for an immediate permanent ceasefire and to vote for this at the UN</span></p></li><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-roman; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">cease all arms sales to Israel and end military aid for Israel</span></p></li><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-roman; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">call on Israel to resume negotiations with the Palestinians;</span></p></li><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-roman; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">ask to push for an end to the occupation and all parties to adhere to United Nations Resolution 242 </span></p></li><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: lower-roman; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">ask all parties to release hostages and prisoners held in “administrative detention”</span></p></li></ol></ol></span>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-68161087910545054302023-07-23T18:46:00.005+01:002023-07-23T18:46:51.161+01:00 Green scheme to slow traffic on busy road goes ahead<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOKd7Gn0YjUGMgIBPJGj2GPXxNMfgprLMsrYLdO5ARgx0tFSOh389rPwNsGmiq9k1aCsl2poM84bEAHCvuEN7HCeoCgwhJniWOSnf6rG47fDQ7_BmnnPTr0fHNYwygf9EKpUnO2B5vhzi4g5ir3Y_sDHsHR2Yw5j2R52J_kJmcepuolQD7AtVPE83Q0GHq/s640/Kaye%20Lane%20traffic%20calming.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOKd7Gn0YjUGMgIBPJGj2GPXxNMfgprLMsrYLdO5ARgx0tFSOh389rPwNsGmiq9k1aCsl2poM84bEAHCvuEN7HCeoCgwhJniWOSnf6rG47fDQ7_BmnnPTr0fHNYwygf9EKpUnO2B5vhzi4g5ir3Y_sDHsHR2Yw5j2R52J_kJmcepuolQD7AtVPE83Q0GHq/w393-h295/Kaye%20Lane%20traffic%20calming.JPG" width="393" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cllrs Allison, Lee-Richards & Cooper on Kaye Lane</td></tr></tbody></table><br />A scheme to slow traffic on a busy road is going ahead following a funding proposal from Newsome Ward Green Party Councillors.</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-d52358b4-7fff-2b79-abe3-1bc191122ed9"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The traffic calming is being installed on Ashes Lane, Kaye Lane and Westgate on the road leading from Castle Hill to Almondbury. It is well known as being prone to speeding cars and there have been collisions demolishing walls with many local people concerned that it was only a matter of time before someone is killed on this stretch of road. The works are scheduled to be carried out between Monday 24th July and Friday 4th of August during which time the road will be closed to traffic.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Newsome Ward Green Party Councillor Andrew Cooper said,</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“ I am really pleased this work is finally being carried out. Local residents have been calling for action to reduce speeds for some time. The scheme did not meet Kirklees Council’s criteria for funding so we had to use our limited local budget to ensure the traffic calming went ahead. As the Westgate part of the schemes and some of Kaye Lane were in the neighbouring Almondbury Ward we pooled our local budget with the Almondbury Councillors budget to enable the scheme to get the go ahead. The important thing is that this will make a dangerous road safer.”</span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div></span>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-57022499747312396322023-03-05T19:44:00.001+00:002023-03-05T19:44:18.996+00:00Newsome residents protest at Kirklees plans to build on green space<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj46eAsfWaB3hzwTmCT9h8JEnjUqmCLiQjy_Qn4pfVlSti3HbGamI29HOtg7HNS_XGjvo0XgNUrp0WjFEcZGf-wGlpmNa4mtK9j9p-UzXeUUy4_ynpet7BBmZbIrzqo6jngS7Xydd-ua33o974Eapbtm4ZWUNtlyk7iIOL78amkm587-7oQhp7EQNtdSw/s4256/Mansion%20Gardens%20protest.JPG" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2832" data-original-width="4256" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj46eAsfWaB3hzwTmCT9h8JEnjUqmCLiQjy_Qn4pfVlSti3HbGamI29HOtg7HNS_XGjvo0XgNUrp0WjFEcZGf-wGlpmNa4mtK9j9p-UzXeUUy4_ynpet7BBmZbIrzqo6jngS7Xydd-ua33o974Eapbtm4ZWUNtlyk7iIOL78amkm587-7oQhp7EQNtdSw/w480-h319/Mansion%20Gardens%20protest.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Protest at Mansion Gardens</td></tr></tbody></table> <p></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Newsome residents have gathered to protest against Kirklees proposals to build on 2 well loved green spaces.</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-cb4805c0-7fff-0a1a-e509-6f8ba544b0ec"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Kirklees Council will soon be consulting on its plans to build 32 houses on land adjacent to Jackroyd Lane in Newsome and a further 40 houses at nearby Blue Bell Hill.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Local Newsome Green Party Councillors Sue Lee- Richards, Karen Allison and Andrew Cooper are backing local residents against the Labour led Council’s plans</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Councillor Sue Lee-Richards said,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Both the land at Jackroyd Lane and at Blue Bell Hill are valued by the local community. The Jackroyd Lane site is part of a green corridor that goes all the way up to Castle Hill and land at Blue Bell Hill and provides recreational space for people in the middle of a built up area between Newsome and Taylor Hill. The importance of access to nearby green spaces for good mental health has become really clear to so many of us through the covid lockdown. Kirklees needs to protect green land not build on it. There are plenty of brownfield sites we should develop on if we really care about our local environments.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Councillor Karen Allison said,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“The access to both sites is very poor with narrow roads through built up residential areas towards the fields the Council wants to build on. It would mean lots more traffic on what are currently quiet estates. It will also be a nightmare for residents during the construction phase.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Councillor Andrew Cooper said,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “We are not NIMBYs, and we want development in the Newsome Ward. We have been actively seeking to encourage new homes on the Newsome Mills, a brownfield site, where there is good access. This makes far more sense than Kirklees proposals to build on local green fields. They should drop these plans and respect the views of local people"</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihnZPwDrBxV-1IgOFvXxNc3kCdnUXk7eUM8tMHc2wvQMm5Tr_samNSRsV8oVLHkXj77u3U_nSh1JgAkh_SDgA10NVCqAOrO3JWqk_Ts6VQ6f0mmPdrqMBrYLCENOubq73iCZof1e1bz_BKZIt_phpsx5hI8Qxbk6QVN73ZwnPYjWWHd4iGnwjoTOVeew/s4147/Jackroyd%20Lane%20Protest%20landscape.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1315" data-original-width="4147" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihnZPwDrBxV-1IgOFvXxNc3kCdnUXk7eUM8tMHc2wvQMm5Tr_samNSRsV8oVLHkXj77u3U_nSh1JgAkh_SDgA10NVCqAOrO3JWqk_Ts6VQ6f0mmPdrqMBrYLCENOubq73iCZof1e1bz_BKZIt_phpsx5hI8Qxbk6QVN73ZwnPYjWWHd4iGnwjoTOVeew/w616-h195/Jackroyd%20Lane%20Protest%20landscape.JPG" width="616" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jackroyd Lane protest</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-12298154571617698152023-03-05T19:43:00.005+00:002023-03-05T19:43:40.319+00:00Cllr Andrew Cooper's speech at the final service at St John's Church, Newsome - 5/3/23<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzK_GVkejtLchUy6fAd-9HRB16UJLKNdZ3hFIikOCPa_gO4GJjul-T6lBrrUzsKultLAvsKM_xTbPYB8hZeZKJiKPU-qG-SEPC_TpESGh5E2Hmd8QQ-uplHKzxQ5XOteKJlreRiPbp0r43VAqd1f9JorP8LFULnihffwsq1tk7f5tzqbVogXZKxn5ChQ/s853/AC%20speaking%20at%20St%20John's%20last%20service.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="853" data-original-width="640" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzK_GVkejtLchUy6fAd-9HRB16UJLKNdZ3hFIikOCPa_gO4GJjul-T6lBrrUzsKultLAvsKM_xTbPYB8hZeZKJiKPU-qG-SEPC_TpESGh5E2Hmd8QQ-uplHKzxQ5XOteKJlreRiPbp0r43VAqd1f9JorP8LFULnihffwsq1tk7f5tzqbVogXZKxn5ChQ/w297-h396/AC%20speaking%20at%20St%20John's%20last%20service.jpg" width="297" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt;">It is my
role today to talk about the future of St John’s</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When I and
my colleagues Sue Lee-Richards and Karen Allison were told of the likely
closure of the church we were all of the same view and that was that it had to
be saved for the community.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We have lost
so much locally. Newsome Mills due to arson and the Mill ponds due to the
Planning Inspectorate. So when it came to St Johns our view was ‘Not this time
and not this building’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We formed a
Community Benefit Society, registered with the Financial Conduct Authority,
with the express aim of making the church building into a Community café and
Event space. So to be clear it is not the council taking over the building but
the community of Newsome itself.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We will
respect the buildings past and what it has meant to generations of local people
who have been christened, married and had funerals here, We recognise the
history and heritage of the building and we are pleased that the Church of
England will continue to have a relationship with us as a member of ‘The
Newsome Centre’s’ board.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Our vision,
informed by hundreds of conversations with local people is to have a warm
comfortable place where the community can come together, have a cuppa, have a
chat, share the ups and downs of everyday life, maybe bend the ear of your
local cllr. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We want
people to celebrate life events here so not weddings but wedding receptions,
not funerals but wakes certainly. We want this to be a centre for community
events and a small conference centre.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
could well be a space for exercise classes. You have no idea how much I am
looking forward to attending my first Yoga or pilates class here.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We will need
your help to realise this vision. Architects One17 have costed up the elements
of the project and we have a plan. The first job is to purchase the building
and the Church of England are being very reasonable but we still need to raise
the cash so <a href="https://www.spacehive.com/a-new-community-hub-for-newsome">please support our crowdfunder</a> if you can and come and look at our
plans in the Scout Hut after this service and ask us questions. We have set a
target of 150 days from now to raise the funds needed. After that we will be
looking to raise the money needed for a new toilet and kitchen block and we
have a plan to raise those funds also. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then we hope to be up and running.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Today is the
end of one chapter of this building’s life and an important one but we have
hope, and we have a plan and we have the goodwill of the community, so there
will be a future/</span></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-16307489890105199382023-01-01T13:59:00.004+00:002023-01-13T17:13:37.620+00:00Greens in Power - What officers should know.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPxm9vBgHK7nuSlBYov0r0yHMxUO_glJcc9Kv6W2uHI3yWwjN9dxIDwOqxS0zlTIooJjcf6BRqzNFydLrO7UtQ3FzDwtDFwVQiVPZbQPZZVmG8Y96pctIqxbSHp4l8Yg8YqU662IRzbT9ioMAVrxK26j9XDO4RLg-bLZ0ALlwkkqvXqmxi3Gxsvuuq6Q/s800/Mind.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPxm9vBgHK7nuSlBYov0r0yHMxUO_glJcc9Kv6W2uHI3yWwjN9dxIDwOqxS0zlTIooJjcf6BRqzNFydLrO7UtQ3FzDwtDFwVQiVPZbQPZZVmG8Y96pctIqxbSHp4l8Yg8YqU662IRzbT9ioMAVrxK26j9XDO4RLg-bLZ0ALlwkkqvXqmxi3Gxsvuuq6Q/s320/Mind.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> Recently I was asked to explain what are the key characteristics and motivations for Greens in positions of power on local councils. This was for officers who were unfamiliar with Greens and didn't understand what drove them. It is important that Greens are understood by the people who help us to make our political commitments a reality in the areas that we represent. <p></p><p>I have been a Green Party Cabinet member myself from 2000 to 2006 and have worked with Greens in other Councils in positions of influence or formal power. So I took some soundings from a range of people in the Green Party and this is what I came up with.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></span><b>The importance of
the climate emergency</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Greens have a sense
of mission particularly with regard to the Climate Emergency, so this is
unsurprisingly a strong focus. The first Council Climate Emergency was declared
by Bristol City Council in a motion proposed by our now leader Cllr Carla
Denyer.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>No climate
justice without social justice</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Greens are acutely
aware that climate justice and social justice must come hand in hand. Those
that are placed at the greatest risk by the climate emergency are the most
vulnerable. Greens will be interested in and aim for restorative actions to
address both, such as prioritising insulation for low income households</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Compromise is not
a likely option</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>There is no trading
off environmental priorities against economic ones. Telling Greens we are going
to do these things that will create jobs, housing etc but will have a
significantly harmful environmental impact will not go down well.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>A sense of
urgency</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>The sense of urgency
to address climate issues may well be more palpable than other parties as it has
been top of the Greens agenda for decades.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Economic growth
is not a driver for Green Cllrs</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>In the economy
Growth is not seen as the goal but sustainability recognising that the economy
is dependent on the environment to function. Greens are more likely to driven
by ideas such as thoughts espoused in Doughnut Economics that look at all the outputs</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Green Councillors
– Resource or challenge</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Many Greens are well
informed on climate matters, energy efficiency, renewable energy, biodiversity
etc and so can be regarded as an informed resource or a challenge to
professionals. How this goes will very much be about how Green Cllrs and
Officers approach each other.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Certainty</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>As things Greens
have been saying for decades are now recognised as mainstream this gives many
Greens a sense of certainty in their views and opinions and sometimes that means
certainty about things that are not yet mainstream.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Need for evidence
to back assertions</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Greens like anyone
can be wrong on green issues but if they are, then more effort might be required
to demonstrate they are wrong and referencing sources is important as is the
perceived legitimacy of those sources.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></span><b>No whipping
system</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Greens are of course
members of a Party, but they don’t have a Party whipping system like other
parties have. Of course, they would like all their members to vote the same way
but if one votes a different way and the reasons are understood it is not
necessarily the end of the world.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></span><b> The past is the past</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Greens will feel no
obligation to carry on with decisions made by previous administrations if they
conflict with their values</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></span><b>Space to innovate</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Some officers may
have felt constrained and unable to try new radical projects. Greens may well
be the Councillors who will give officers the space to try new things where
previous administrations may have been too ‘small c’ conservative. They will
want to show their difference from what has gone before so innovation may be
encouraged.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Natural
co-operators – no honestly!</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk86665443;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Despite their
certainty, sense of urgency and mission and rejection of conventional economics
Greens can be natural co-operators and are not as traditionally partisan as
other some other parties.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-56684551723345154942022-12-26T10:45:00.002+00:002022-12-26T10:59:10.209+00:00Greens Volunteer Bus Service celebrates 30 year Anniversary<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB_emYBMYAMoSg6JMB-6YNcRMxHcc8AMZsZmiN_alcC_qHWw-0wbzumaNZbOUZHUyyQ5vlziUaXFoAmHAQlR7Ohcm8oHdi39ADujGiU9M06OwQ7k_RjGXeaZoYRktyyK9PRrehadYzYCWvqtA1LLP5A6Flmg-Uf30z2qfsQWMqjS39MCp4TuqfbTM5pA/s640/New%20Years%20Day%20Minibus.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="426" data-original-width="640" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB_emYBMYAMoSg6JMB-6YNcRMxHcc8AMZsZmiN_alcC_qHWw-0wbzumaNZbOUZHUyyQ5vlziUaXFoAmHAQlR7Ohcm8oHdi39ADujGiU9M06OwQ7k_RjGXeaZoYRktyyK9PRrehadYzYCWvqtA1LLP5A6Flmg-Uf30z2qfsQWMqjS39MCp4TuqfbTM5pA/w400-h266/New%20Years%20Day%20Minibus.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cllrs Andrew Cooper, Sue Lee-Richards & Karen Allison </td></tr></tbody></table><br />A bus service started by the Green Party in Huddersfield
over the festive period in 1992 is marking its 30th Anniversary in service.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>The Green Party in the Newsome Ward commenced the service as
a response to bus service cuts in the 1990s and used to cover Boxing Day and
New Years Day before Boxing Day Services were restored a few years ago. The New
Year’s Day service has run on every New Year’s Day for 30 years with the
exception of 2020 due to Covid restrictions.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Councillor Andrew Cooper who is one of the drivers on the
service said,</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p>“I remember the first one we ran in 1992 which
started as a protest against the removal of services over the holiday
period. Since then some services have been resumed in some areas in recent
years on Boxing Day. In recent years the minibus has been donated by Kirklees
Council for which we are very grateful”</i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>The Bus service links Berry Brow, Newsome, the Town Centre
and goes up to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary and is used by people visiting
relatives in hospital.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Newsome Green Party Councillor Sue Lee-Richards who is also
a volunteer on the bus service said</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p>“I really enjoy doing the bus service each year and it is
now very much part of our Christmas holiday routine. At this time of year when
there are limited public transport services taxi journeys can be expensive so
people who use the minibus really do value it. We put timetables on bus stops,
in local shops and on newsletters that go to thousands of homes, so people are
aware of our schedule. The service is free to use but donations towards fuel
costs are always welcome. A copy of our timetable is below.”</i></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwWyMS_LMpCXxAYjhtov-ac2XTrSRL9DBeJcNVrkyAYHTNaxFQKGLWDnFy_FP7Y8Zb0o32jhjlBcR__GrrZe9T5LrhB011fV9X7XO8bE6lFWtZg9Uq7Uef9gsbxSOIjuw0F7nLB3-5bjRbaX3X4NoQIFdOAzRks6ccK79qhSb7cf4Y0_nzRTiVEGOHIQ/s654/2021%20Bus%20timetable.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="654" data-original-width="465" height="861" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwWyMS_LMpCXxAYjhtov-ac2XTrSRL9DBeJcNVrkyAYHTNaxFQKGLWDnFy_FP7Y8Zb0o32jhjlBcR__GrrZe9T5LrhB011fV9X7XO8bE6lFWtZg9Uq7Uef9gsbxSOIjuw0F7nLB3-5bjRbaX3X4NoQIFdOAzRks6ccK79qhSb7cf4Y0_nzRTiVEGOHIQ/w613-h861/2021%20Bus%20timetable.JPG" width="613" /></a></div><br /><i><br /></i><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-75862980220190885992022-12-07T20:04:00.002+00:002022-12-07T20:04:22.352+00:00Cllr Andrew Cooper's Speech on Kirklees Climate Change Action Plan - Kirklees Full Council 7/12/22<p> <span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Just to be clear and to avoid accusations by Cllr Simpson, that I am making up my own facts, I'll only quote from the report that is in front of us today.</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-61b3c4f2-7fff-0683-dc35-1aaa173e9178"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When is a Climate Change Action Plan NOT a Climate Change Action Plan? I guess the answer to this question is when it says it isn’t. The report on the Climate Change Action Plan says,</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“The CCAP is not a list of firm commitments, investment proposals or instructions at this point in the process. But it does set out detailed actions that</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> can </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">be taken by the Council, key partners, and members of the wider community to help deliver the district's net zero and climate ready target.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now I don’t know about you but that doesn’t sound anything like an action plan to me.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And what consequences flow from “the plan”. For instance costs, risks, legal implications. The report says </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2.15. As this version of the CCAP is not a list of commitments and instructions at this stage in the process, there are no costs associated with its approval. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Furthermore it says,</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2.23. There are minimal risks associated with the publication of this plan, due to the non-committal nature of the CCAP”.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And on legal implications</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">5.2. As the CCAP shown in Appendix 1 of this report is not a list of commitments and instructions, there are no broader legal implications in the approval of this plan. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I am disappointed that there are no implications from this report. I want the report to be consequential, important and substantial.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I do the report a slight misservice as there is a risk identified. It says:</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 2.24. The core risks with this CCAP comes primarily from potential communication and publication of the documentation. Specifically associated with the positive and negative response expected from the public, partner organisations such as the Kirklees Climate Commission. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When you are expecting a possible poor response from your principal partner the Kirklees Climate Commission you’ve got to be asking yourself some serious questions as to why we are in this space.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It further goes on to say</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">5.14. A core focus of this criticism is expected around the non-committal nature of this CCAP at this stage in the process. To combat this, we are striving to clearly communicate how the next steps in our action plan process will result in firm commitments, once we have developed and identified – through extensive resident and stakeholder engagement, a refined number of high-priority actions by place, which will be accompanied by a business case providing indicative costs and carbon figures. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So in a strange way I am reassured by this report. Reassured because I have heard certain Cabinet Members saying how we are one of the best Councils in the country on addressing climate change. I tell you now, we are not and recognising that is the first step towards improving so I commend officers for their candour in this report and all the good work they are doing but I’d like a clear understanding from Cabinet Members of when we will have a real Climate Change Action Plan given that we are nearly 4 years since the Council declared a Climate Emergency.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I was a bit bemused by this statement in the report</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">3.11., Kirklees Council have and will continue to deliver a Young Persons Climate Festival helping educate, inform, and give young people a chance to get involved with the various environmental initiatives taking place across Kirklees.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If there’s something I’m really clear about, it is that young people, ( with one or two exceptions), get climate change almost instinctively, as the future that we are just beginning to see is getting worse and the consequences of our actions are ones that they will experience acutely. Many are well informed, and educate themselves, you do that, when it is a threat to your future and your very survival.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I think we need another “Festival'' to inform and educate Councillors, Directors, Heads of Service. Why not ensure we all go through a Carbon Literacy course so they properly understand the implications of decisions on future generations. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In some ways the most shocking part of the report was this statement,</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“6.3. Review by portfolio holders: Cllr Simpson (Green and Clean), Cllr Davies (Environment) and Cllr Mather (Corporate) were consulted and had no comments on the options or recommendations put forward in this report.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What nothing? Zilch? Nada? Arguably the most important document about what we are doing locally to address climate change and our Kirklees Cabinet members had nothing to say?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Utterly shocking!</span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-19892560902160314742022-11-18T21:36:00.002+00:002022-11-18T21:58:58.014+00:00We can rebuild him!<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEitkyLgJ5-pZZz6CF6hPVb1-sSSIcoA1vYJCsDblJ7so4gz0g8DNG1d2V8qDQL0JgNUvOc1Ov5GH-z4akv0iUrNXouGaoI-9L1B64WQNv7aOx3Mf1MhoOOiWOOJOyJWUvDl0eDMAqFhcaY7FxsHciBEwpCerMkAPbHqnRz08WinRB9xJyhB3Y95ix0MNw" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEitkyLgJ5-pZZz6CF6hPVb1-sSSIcoA1vYJCsDblJ7so4gz0g8DNG1d2V8qDQL0JgNUvOc1Ov5GH-z4akv0iUrNXouGaoI-9L1B64WQNv7aOx3Mf1MhoOOiWOOJOyJWUvDl0eDMAqFhcaY7FxsHciBEwpCerMkAPbHqnRz08WinRB9xJyhB3Y95ix0MNw=w236-h236" width="236" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My new knee!</td></tr></tbody></table> During lockdown I decided to get fit. We were told we could only go out for exercise for an hour each day. So, for those of us who hardly exercised at all it seemed like a great challenge. For me and Liz it was a walk one day followed by a run the next. Despite the obvious background horror of it all it was lovely getting out in the sunshine in the clear air exploring the countryside around where we lived. Then one day my foot went down a hole I limped a fair bit after that. When my leg got better, I couldn't run without pain and a long period of limping after I tried. Steroid injections didn't seem to make much difference, nor did physiotherapy so following an X-Ray I was sent into an MRI Scanner that's like a very noisy iron lung that gives detailed picture of your insides. When I got my results. it turned out I had arthritis in my right knee. I was offered a new knee. Now my parents in their 80s have 3 new knees so the principle wasn't unfamiliar to me, but I was only 57 and was it that bad really? I could walk for miles. Sometimes my knee hurt but it got better after a few days. In the end I wondered what the state of the NHS might be in a few years and decided to take the opportunity to get it done now when I could. There is so much uncertainty at the moment and with the Perma crisis that we are living in showing no sign of abating then it seemed foolhardy not to take the op.<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGsqitUBB0imQMj-jYObC952AoH1ZgtGvlzouxwCF8zAU_18FXv_OdTPRp7MF52SiB-n-ZZ4IXUaszzKFKy5Tzqs7eB1hR7qZDgC89ls38tPwmESr6WpEZKx7m5hZ9OtVpIzUWdFuLUKqwoBXZUaJ0MWS2CRzoJLD1t3Mx8Z0crAwR8lDiMRg3bg9YLQ" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="866" data-original-width="400" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGsqitUBB0imQMj-jYObC952AoH1ZgtGvlzouxwCF8zAU_18FXv_OdTPRp7MF52SiB-n-ZZ4IXUaszzKFKy5Tzqs7eB1hR7qZDgC89ls38tPwmESr6WpEZKx7m5hZ9OtVpIzUWdFuLUKqwoBXZUaJ0MWS2CRzoJLD1t3Mx8Z0crAwR8lDiMRg3bg9YLQ=w106-h228" width="106" /></a></div><br />The operation itself seemed to go well, was very professionally done. I was asked the same questions several times by different people in the same hospital. I was fine with this; they didn't want to make a mistake. and I didn't want them to make a mistake either! I came round was given a very nice cottage pie and the following morning was released with my cocktail of painkillers. So now I have my daily knee exercises and get a bit wiped out by the strong painkillers. I've avoided the bottle of morphine they gave me though I confess I wondered what it would be like taking it. <p></p><p>So, my hope is that I will end up with a less painful knee and that I will be able to start doing Park runs again. Here's the opening sequence of "The Six Million Dollar Man"</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="327" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/93IDp6wkZZE" width="394" youtube-src-id="93IDp6wkZZE"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-25531115462151660342022-11-09T18:45:00.003+00:002022-11-09T18:49:08.567+00:00Newsome Councillors visit to Left Bank in Leeds<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhIDQKk3Kd98qkg-jeQxO67F5ZTA5RGFKlKEGR1SI12v-fC53P3wSAJe4JUY0ZL3zcgjwSBJbXWDX8uNRHAHl1hQOv-wKYOl68_0NXo_JPDcRl2772SIkiqdArZDacLAolHpebWLix5UBaDFTbyUWn_v7P7TB4-UYhevImA_XqjmOfbgmo40MpUfeM6Uw" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="854" data-original-width="1850" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhIDQKk3Kd98qkg-jeQxO67F5ZTA5RGFKlKEGR1SI12v-fC53P3wSAJe4JUY0ZL3zcgjwSBJbXWDX8uNRHAHl1hQOv-wKYOl68_0NXo_JPDcRl2772SIkiqdArZDacLAolHpebWLix5UBaDFTbyUWn_v7P7TB4-UYhevImA_XqjmOfbgmo40MpUfeM6Uw=w387-h179" width="387" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Newsome Cllrs at Left Bank in Leeds</td></tr></tbody></table>Newsome Ward Councillors had a few hours away from Huddersfield this week and went to Left Bank in Leeds. Left Bank is successful conversion of a church into a community cafe, event space and music venue. We were really interested to see how it operated as we are hoping to do something similar in St John's Church in Newsome through the new Community Benefit Society, we have set up called 'The Newsome Centre'.<p></p><p>It has been in operation for 20 years so seeing what they do, learning from their successes and avoiding pitfalls was a good use of our time. </p><p>A big chunk of their income comes from weddings, not the ceremonies (as former churches can't be used for that purpose), but the receptions where families come together to celebrate marriages. These are some of the most important days of many people's lives so really important that these are done right and professionally. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiyNyLzFsYcV9oV0xe_DAby6urQ7hpN3uWv6H4CtdI1A7J_a6L6cb80OKgbNpww_0kZgq7GwkIRzvL9khZpagFqwwZbeVAQ-WVxPOH9QSYdWVBssNvqmi_DRRwCnzPTO1GTnDuOQIPSD3chX4MDfA9Cl-qCPXVbF_Xw-wI4O5_m9VJJ-3qFWVJZ6ResoA" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="866" data-original-width="399" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiyNyLzFsYcV9oV0xe_DAby6urQ7hpN3uWv6H4CtdI1A7J_a6L6cb80OKgbNpww_0kZgq7GwkIRzvL9khZpagFqwwZbeVAQ-WVxPOH9QSYdWVBssNvqmi_DRRwCnzPTO1GTnDuOQIPSD3chX4MDfA9Cl-qCPXVbF_Xw-wI4O5_m9VJJ-3qFWVJZ6ResoA=w171-h370" width="171" /></a></div>Left Bank and its cafe are open 7 days a week and when we went it was full of young people, mainly students, using the Wi-Fi, having a coffee and doing coursework. Through the week a variety of different groups use the space such as Knit and Natter groups, life drawing classes, older persons art groups, pottery classes, break dancers. It is a vibrant hub for the community, and they have a rich programme of events including Beer Festivals, Arts Festivals, 70s nights, Christmas Parties and indoor 'car boot' sales.<p></p><p>There is a mix of seating from comfy settees, desk space and a few pews. There's a recognition of their heritage as a church with a pulpit, the old organ and a number of other features remaining in place. You can buy a house plant or two there, a birthday card and paintings from local artists. </p><p>The look of the place is quite funky with attractive lighting installations and bright colourful murals. You would be quite happy to spend a few relaxing hours hanging out there with a coffee and a nice piece of cake.</p><p>One key bit of advice we had was "be generous" to organisations with time and space. There should be space for income generating activity but also free space to organisations which have a lot to give to the community and add to the activity and vibrancy of the place.</p><p>A big thanks to Sue Jennings from Left Bank who gave us a real insight into the sort of things we need to be looking at in The Newsome Centre's Business Plan.</p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-35822827960763813102022-11-06T20:16:00.004+00:002022-11-06T20:25:55.555+00:00A629 Edgerton Road widening axed not the trees!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwNQQ78nhT7-S_qeVgTta22GYQoqyoaZFjmc6TzgY_EREY6TnXwv3QsVO8ESalJanta3JhBelMNTYMFRIX9U1SwGqyXm5DPHd83qt6zHN-iifAbNWQToQ2GIzYv8vJ8x_7sE7dDRawhYEwMWBX1LoTSXKpc_EOpUDSIwFcMN_4Xau6unJZWlG3hMWZ7w/s810/Blacker%20road%20trees.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="810" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwNQQ78nhT7-S_qeVgTta22GYQoqyoaZFjmc6TzgY_EREY6TnXwv3QsVO8ESalJanta3JhBelMNTYMFRIX9U1SwGqyXm5DPHd83qt6zHN-iifAbNWQToQ2GIzYv8vJ8x_7sE7dDRawhYEwMWBX1LoTSXKpc_EOpUDSIwFcMN_4Xau6unJZWlG3hMWZ7w/s320/Blacker%20road%20trees.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> I got the news last week that the Kirklees proposal to fell 88 trees near the Blacker Road junction to widen the road had been "paused". <p></p><p>" Paused" is defined as "interrupting an action briefly" but this pause is not brief. There is no funding from West Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority nor Kirklees for this part of the scheme and there is no plan to take it forward. So "shelved" or even "cancelled" seems much more accurate a description.</p><p>It has been a long campaign to save these trees along what is regarded as an iconic and beautiful tree lined route through Edgerton into Huddersfield. I am full of admiration for the determination of the campaigners. They lobbied Councillors in the rain outside Huddersfield Town Hall, put questions to the Labour Cabinet members in Full Council meetings and staged "Banners at the Junction" protests on numerous Saturday mornings. At times it seemed that success was unlikely but now it is clear that they have succeeded.</p><p>The success is not an admission of error by either WYCMA or Kirklees. The reason given is funding constraints and overprogramming. Basically, due to inflation and other factors they haven't got the budget they need to do everything they want to do. The campaigners' victory is down to them making so clear that this is such an unpopular scheme that it was top of the list to be cut. So unfortunately, no revelatory moment from the Labour Cabinet or the West Yorkshire Mayor.</p><p>The arguments against the widening and tree felling were very clear. The carbon emissions calculations were dubious, the impact on heritage ignored as was the effect on local biodiversity. These arguments were amplified by the Council's own Tree Officer, the Kirklees Climate Commission and the Woodland Trust. Their arguments against were never properly addressed by the Labour Cabinet member. <a href="https://clrandrewcooper.blogspot.com/2021/10/facts-and-nothing-but-facts-labours.html"><b>Instead of addressing their arguments he decided to accuse me of making up my own facts</b></a> when all I was doing was repeating their facts. Got to say I wasn't impressed.</p><p>So, what next? People's lives have been affected. Some homes and parts of gardens would have been lost along the route. Saying the scheme is "paused" does not give them the closure they need. Kirklees owes it to the householders who have been disrupted for the last few years to have the certainty they need to get on with their lives. </p><p>As a reminder of the reasons that we needed to save these trees here's the campaign video </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="344" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1Tv2g16eQNk" width="414" youtube-src-id="1Tv2g16eQNk"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-22198063554382083352022-10-10T09:05:00.008+01:002022-10-10T09:13:34.035+01:00Parish Action on Cost of living crisis<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5zeRnpx-mCAFRHH4uCm-wyadb8I-88d9Cznf_KD_OAQ4Ia2hUkFRbkXTVRKNhfJBiA2geIMipt4TtMyTJAOZkf7fwd2OptBdFw5FT8mjAIIB6jAycuVSPUCB4Y1XcEJy3Vn4E0Ds2oTVUF11W6EYZDSMK2fk2lAfbqGkerE24wBO_6ztPwFVYreSSOA/s1872/Andrew%20and%20Robert.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="1872" height="148" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5zeRnpx-mCAFRHH4uCm-wyadb8I-88d9Cznf_KD_OAQ4Ia2hUkFRbkXTVRKNhfJBiA2geIMipt4TtMyTJAOZkf7fwd2OptBdFw5FT8mjAIIB6jAycuVSPUCB4Y1XcEJy3Vn4E0Ds2oTVUF11W6EYZDSMK2fk2lAfbqGkerE24wBO_6ztPwFVYreSSOA/s320/Andrew%20and%20Robert.jpeg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Kirkburton Parish Council has taken action to help
address the cost-of-living crisis</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif">The debate on the cost-of-living crisis was
initiated by Green Party Parish Councillor Robert Barraclough. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Robert said,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif">“People think of the Kirkburton Parish as a ‘well
off’ area but poverty can be hidden with some people getting by on low fixed
incomes particularly pensioners.We also have community organisations that have
been hit hard by the pandemic which limited their opportunity to raise funds
and now they face the possibility of higher fees for room hire because of the
massive hike in energy bills. To tackle these problems, we have made a donation
of £1500 to The Welcome Centre who are the largest food bank in our area
and asked them to engage with the many villages that make up the Kirkburton
Parish. We have also encouraged community organisations that have been hit with
big room hire costs to apply to the Parish Council for a grant to help deal
with these extra costs.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Councillor Andrew Cooper who is also a Kirkburton
Parish Councillor said,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif">“We are also asking people managing Community
Buildings to apply for funding to improve the energy efficiency of their
buildings. Whether it is insulation or solar panels or improvements to lighting
all these things can help reduce energy use in buildings. It is good for
finances and the environment. Parish Councils don’t have huge budgets like
Kirklees Council, but we do make good use of the funds we have even if it is in
a small way.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Details of Kirkburton Parish Council grant schemes
can be found on the Kirkburton Parish Council website </span><a href="http://www.kbpc.co.uk"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #1155cc;">www.kbpc.co.uk</span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><p></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-42858602561497907822022-08-31T19:23:00.003+01:002022-08-31T19:25:20.526+01:00How do Councils respond to the Energy Bill Tsunami that is coming?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjymHxod9vQILUe3CqZTzJGLfw1lafxZet3tYnkz6lM5rnEBMhDEf18_YEWNiOehpeHQ3jhPSOPrDWx0PqGPZ3UUnqMKsD7r3zElGwZSrneNlyhn4xkrrG8iCDDrUKVeT7OvutFCU4CAafSP_yU55oosfAXpu87_l6rX20Z2k9aoOWrrviJm15wmJCA/s900/tsunami-and-mount-fuji-vintage-japanese-ukiyo-e-art-just-eclectic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="900" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjymHxod9vQILUe3CqZTzJGLfw1lafxZet3tYnkz6lM5rnEBMhDEf18_YEWNiOehpeHQ3jhPSOPrDWx0PqGPZ3UUnqMKsD7r3zElGwZSrneNlyhn4xkrrG8iCDDrUKVeT7OvutFCU4CAafSP_yU55oosfAXpu87_l6rX20Z2k9aoOWrrviJm15wmJCA/s320/tsunami-and-mount-fuji-vintage-japanese-ukiyo-e-art-just-eclectic.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">When the Government
funded them, I used to manage the South and West Yorkshire Energy Savings Trust Advice Centre.
We used to do a lot of easy energy saving advice measures which would have a fairly
small impact on bills over an entire year. Now these advice measures, like turning your
thermostat down 1 degree and only boiling as much hot water as you need etc, will save more money than they used to. The problem with this advice is that it all looks
a bit piecemeal when compared with the cost of living tsunami which is hurtling towards us all.
There are going to be people who can make adjustments to their heating systems
timers and thermostats that will save them hundreds of pounds but these will be
the people who can afford to keep their heating systems running. Hundreds of
thousands, if not millions of people are not going to be in that fortunate position.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Of course what is
needed is a mass deep retrofit programme but that is not going to happen with an absence of political will and even we had that political will it would take years to
start making an impact. The Green Party are right to push for nationalisation of the
energy companies but that is not in our gift and the path to take where the
Government will agree with us is not at all obvious. Locally we need advice that
is practical and impactful.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><o:p> </o:p></span>The sort of advice
that makes a big difference is advice which does not require you to heat your
home as much as you did before. During the pandemic we urged people to stay
apart but in the cost of living crisis we need to urge people to come together.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Warm Clubs -
Shared heated space </b>–
promote the idea of neighbourly sharing of heat where people invite neighbours
round 1 day a week and reciprocate in a group of 4 or 5. Works best with people
who get on obviously. Advice on how to run a Warm Club – communal eating, agree to watch
a movie together, board games would be needed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Warm Banks</b> – these are growing as a proposition but
they need a specification, almost a licence. Is there comfortable seating? Is
there entertainment? Is there food? How do you address the fact that
people are different and like different things? Is there advice? Is there a
Manager of a Warm Bank to deal with issues (there are always issues when people
come together!) We need a network of Warm Banks close to where people live so
they don’t have to pay for travel</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Warm the person
more and the house less</b> – <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheoodie.co.uk%2F&data=05%7C01%7Candrew.cooper2%40sheffield.gov.uk%7C67c85b540598499f594a08da8b687365%7Ca1ba59b9720448d8a3607770245ad4a9%7C0%7C0%7C637975577976197120%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=LWBQrUex%2BnajtCQmDG7vr0sRDKE%2F5e2F6bf7O3rlQoo%3D&reserved=0">providing
Oodies</a> – All over blanket clothing. Providing <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fgadgets-reviews.com%2Fuk%2Freview%2F2609-best-heated-vests.html&data=05%7C01%7Candrew.cooper2%40sheffield.gov.uk%7C67c85b540598499f594a08da8b687365%7Ca1ba59b9720448d8a3607770245ad4a9%7C0%7C0%7C637975577976197120%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=n5RPeWu7XZPZMSH8sF29WIEmIEBsPKOKAFQ0tkZeaVk%3D&reserved=0">heated
gilets</a> where electric heated elements help keep people cosy. Some people
will be able to afford these and change there lifestyles accordingly. Where
people can’t afford these then it makes sense for the Council and other public
bodies to provide them. They can be relatively cheap per unit.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>Advice and
advocacy</b> – People need
somewhere to go/to ring to get trusted advice and advocacy where they have
issues with their energy bills and people to speak on their behalf. This sounds
like something that ought to be established at the regional level with funding from West Yorkshire Combined Authority and advisors trained to the NEA Energy Awareness City and
Guilds level.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><o:p> </o:p></span>The other important
thing to remember is that this is not just fuel poverty, it is food poverty,
school uniform poverty, period poverty. Actually it is just Poverty and a lot
of people who never expected to be in it are going to dumbfounded, lost and
acutely embarrassed to find themselves in need of help. With the mental and physical impacts expected, the next Tsumami could well be a public health one.</span></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-27031588735390336092022-08-25T09:43:00.004+01:002022-08-25T09:45:14.946+01:00Opportunity knocks!<p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDhP9g09dr2GsIOm0gRn-p3Gh7KW1N56FM9i93xQVNttSQRhxoP2O4FS-48yIDkBMPxagBC6jBSse1D_ALftpzqBtthpU6ygJxBlolLOun3V4lAJV3YCSus12KUiJNfPuCFELIAl7GLskTUVGDyNUFOYDfGeEr5dZv-Tqt9hiAUQRadFJHijtG5UgKg/s475/Opportunity-Knocks.jpg" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="475" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDhP9g09dr2GsIOm0gRn-p3Gh7KW1N56FM9i93xQVNttSQRhxoP2O4FS-48yIDkBMPxagBC6jBSse1D_ALftpzqBtthpU6ygJxBlolLOun3V4lAJV3YCSus12KUiJNfPuCFELIAl7GLskTUVGDyNUFOYDfGeEr5dZv-Tqt9hiAUQRadFJHijtG5UgKg/s320/Opportunity-Knocks.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: arial;"> Many Councillors will be familiar with their local Councils Corporate Risk Register where threats to the Council's core functions and financial health are identified and actions taken to mitigate these risks are detailed. This is a totally necessary and responsible activity for any large public organisation responsible for delivering vital local services. There is a danger however that this reinforces the risk averse culture that can exist in many councils with an emphasis on playing it safe and giving an undue weight to risk avoidance rather than taking opportunities.</span></p><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In June Sheffield City Council passed a resolution to establish a Corporate Opportunities Register to balance the attention given to risk and opportunity by senior officers and Councillors. The motion proposed by the Green Party group said,</span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;">"that to act as a balance to the Corporate Risk Register, there
should be a Corporate Opportunities Register, detailing new funding
opportunities, partnership opportunities and initiatives that will help
deliver the Council's objectives, such as supporting those affected
by the cost of living crisis."</span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">So what might a Corporate Opportunities Register look like? First you need to identify what the opportunity is. Is it funding you can bid for from Government or other sources? Is it a partnership with another organisation that might help you drive efficiencies and deliver better services? Is it a new activity that can help the Council achieve it's aims or generate an income stream? All these opportunities would need to be broken down by directorates to ensure high level attention is given across the council .</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Not all opportunities we could take should be taken. Perhaps the likelihood of success is low or the effort expended simply not worth it, but demonstrating that as an organisation the Council is aware and tracking opportunities is important. It builds confidence and shows that officers and members are outward looking and keen to look beyond the councils own resources to achieve it's goals.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The real gain from establishing a Corporate Opportunities Register is to show that the culture of the Council is one that is outward facing, ambitious for it's people, entrepreneurial and dynamic. Surely that is something we would like all our Councils to be?</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><i><br /></i></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-81640498563497027412022-04-21T13:08:00.002+01:002022-04-21T13:08:12.113+01:00Kirklees Green Party Councillors 2022 Manifesto<p> <b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Starting the retrofit revolution in Kirklees</span></span></b><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkRqV4CzEecBuBqLy3lrnp_Zvh7UUxVxCBq-lHxxWaWmLqWIe4NsCWQh9yfTVi2HKIUTxnwJiOQufh8ycX8LC7bVxH9itTKTBN-CWoyvj2N5alFTobWit1gOvtb1SPTlc6FoDj66QA25lPju1tPbO2e1mOyMh1_lIAfx-_I6yMD5aVuSwfRKhJKTM4OA=s960" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkRqV4CzEecBuBqLy3lrnp_Zvh7UUxVxCBq-lHxxWaWmLqWIe4NsCWQh9yfTVi2HKIUTxnwJiOQufh8ycX8LC7bVxH9itTKTBN-CWoyvj2N5alFTobWit1gOvtb1SPTlc6FoDj66QA25lPju1tPbO2e1mOyMh1_lIAfx-_I6yMD5aVuSwfRKhJKTM4OA=w446-h336" width="446" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Cllr Cooper visiting Energiesprong homes in Nottingham</b></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">The Council has made a start on retrofitting its own housing stock. This is positive but what is lacking is a financially sustainable model, which can deliver improvement to homes at scale to a zero-energy standard. Our proposal based on the Energiesprong (energy leap) model addresses this and provides a way of building the capacity and capability to deliver for owner occupiers and the wider housing sector.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Energiesprong work with local Councils on developing a programme to deliver warmer homes through a retrofit programme delivering a home which is net zero energy, meaning it generates the total amount of energy required for its heating, hot water and electrical appliances. It also provides superior indoor comfort. This is achieved using prefabricated facades, insulated rooftops with solar panels, smart heating, and ventilation and cooling installations. A refurbishment comes with a long-year performance warranty on both the indoor climate and the energy performance for up to 40 years. A complete home makeover can be completed in as little as a day!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Energiesprong are not a contractor themselves but work with councils to help procure contractors to deliver to the Energiesprong specification.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Councils such as Nottingham, Exeter and a number of London Boroughs are already working together on Energiesprong projects as part of the Retrofit Accelerator Homes Investment Partnership. They share best practice and expertise and have been successful in a number of funding bids to government drawing in millions to support the development of the Energiesprong model.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>How much does it cost?</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span>The cost for an initial 50 properties would be around £85,000/property. The expectation is that for future rounds of properties that this would reduce to around £55,000/property as economies of scale are realised.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>How is it paid for?</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span>There is some initial outlay for setting up the Energiesprong approach through the Housing Revenue Account but as the capital costs come down the expectation is that it would become self-financing through lower maintenance and servicing costs e.g., no gas safety checks, lower maintenance etc and through charging a comfort charge to the tenant. Energiesprong guarantee that the fuel bill that the tenants pay plus the comfort charge will be less than they were paying in energy costs for their home before refurbishment.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.energiesprong.uk/">https://www.energiesprong.uk/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.energiesprong.uk/newspage/innovation-partnership-why-a-new-approach-to-retrofit-procurement-is-key-to-net-zero">https://www.energiesprong.uk/newspage/innovation-partnership-why-a-new-approach-to-retrofit-procurement-is-key-to-net-zero</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.ukgbc.org/news/nottingham-first-to-adopt-revolutionary-energiesprong-housing-approach/">https://www.ukgbc.org/news/nottingham-first-to-adopt-revolutionary-energiesprong-housing-approach/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Passivhaus or equivalent as standard on all Council new build projects</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgmP9x60lujjeQYZ1fEO4fJ-FcE_2ZtebJ6oNlz8e_RekXWbnLQJM8m00CxPa6UTynHZMXRJ_aAond3sFd14YBJIZpMLLgguLpb9psEKJB-kCix8WjjSgh9ZJ1csF-9OGAlbNZ9NSVfn3VksdqbNToaYDAHFZyWWuSYywx_QZUCb9jZaRoDSMxDL5Uj_Q=s730" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="730" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgmP9x60lujjeQYZ1fEO4fJ-FcE_2ZtebJ6oNlz8e_RekXWbnLQJM8m00CxPa6UTynHZMXRJ_aAond3sFd14YBJIZpMLLgguLpb9psEKJB-kCix8WjjSgh9ZJ1csF-9OGAlbNZ9NSVfn3VksdqbNToaYDAHFZyWWuSYywx_QZUCb9jZaRoDSMxDL5Uj_Q=s320" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">5 years after the all party Passivhaus group recommended that the Council build its new developments to the passivhaus standard Kirklees is now doing a pilot project on 12 houses. The lack of a policy on the standard for new build housing in Kirklees at a time when we ought to be leading by example is shameful. The purpose of the pilot has not been explained. What can be learnt by building in Kirklees that can’t be learnt from more progressive Councils in other parts of the country such as Exeter City Council?<o:p></o:p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>The lack of a policy is expensive as one-off projects like Kirklees passivhaus pilot come at a cost premium. Having a high energy efficiency standard means developers can invest in skills locally, build capacity and the capability to deliver to the passivhaus standard or equivalent. We should also be seeking funding from the West Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority to help pay for the 4% uplift in costs through gainshare or other regional funding sources.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.apse.org.uk/apse/index.cfm/news/articles/20181/passivhaus-exeter-city-council-leading-by-example/#">https://www.apse.org.uk/apse/index.cfm/news/articles/20181/passivhaus-exeter-city-council-leading-by-example/#</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Solar PV Panels on all Council new build projects as standard</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>With rising energy prices we need to find ways of reducing energy demand in the home. So, as well as ‘fabric first’ insulation measures we also should use renewables as much as possible on site. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Funding could be sought from Combined Authority Gainshare funding but failing that HRA funds could be utilised to achieve this.</span><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></b></p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi2iI3AMvhojlyuaghF4Zgqyy08NFLxBoZ19YVklmWFfrM2ZMpmP11oldB4n0j47-kYboKLqJkN2q69o2gUWToMroOqjncqbbF4wPxDsAKtaLYv16JxoEGdIqLxy-TOPHDrwS5r_h_Dy1bHIIDYB8NywLY42A-iPOULpUaFWv4oELb41V9RhpneGwqtog=s960" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="432" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi2iI3AMvhojlyuaghF4Zgqyy08NFLxBoZ19YVklmWFfrM2ZMpmP11oldB4n0j47-kYboKLqJkN2q69o2gUWToMroOqjncqbbF4wPxDsAKtaLYv16JxoEGdIqLxy-TOPHDrwS5r_h_Dy1bHIIDYB8NywLY42A-iPOULpUaFWv4oELb41V9RhpneGwqtog=s320" width="144" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cllr Karen Allison</td></tr></tbody></table>Engaging the community in climate action</span></b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Tackling climate change has got to be made real to local people. Involving people in positive projects helps give people a sense of well being and not just thinking they are at the mercy of decisions by national governments and decisions at global climate summits.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>We can help them feel empowered and involved in addressing the threat to all our futures. For the next 2 years through the Place partnerships, we wish to support a range of community lead projects to address climate change.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>This could be improving the energy efficiency of public buildings, tree planting, projects to support biodiversity and nature-based flood prevention measures.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Learning from others</span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYQHewACJdwbpOQzCTW8LsjFFPEJsPHZ8VZGLbbJrjhVfia9F8UvO95pHHHGm1ua37PkiKFlnajpPQwrBOHQ4Ha2vubp6odEJUzBtyNBeWxJLsWNNG50gGPIhzt4E-iTbVUhDkxLJfCVSn4nMef_X8Yedfowg27cWfABo2VEzwT2gDKu5DqaDUNHPUNg=s246" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="205" data-original-width="246" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYQHewACJdwbpOQzCTW8LsjFFPEJsPHZ8VZGLbbJrjhVfia9F8UvO95pHHHGm1ua37PkiKFlnajpPQwrBOHQ4Ha2vubp6odEJUzBtyNBeWxJLsWNNG50gGPIhzt4E-iTbVUhDkxLJfCVSn4nMef_X8Yedfowg27cWfABo2VEzwT2gDKu5DqaDUNHPUNg=w227-h189" width="227" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />Kirklees needs to approach its role in addressing climate change with humility. We frequently hear from Labour Cabinet members about how we are ‘the best’ in this policy area. We aren’t. There are positive things happening on the climate agenda in Kirklees but we are not forerunners or innovators in addressing climate change. The lack of a climate action plan lead to the Council getting a 0% rating from Climate Emergency UK earlier this year. Joining the Global Covenant of Mayors would provide us with valuable insight and support form the international community of local and regional authorities addressing climate change. It works to provide value to participating councils by mobilizing the critical financing and technical assistance that members require to access investment. The Global Covenant of Mayors ensures that signatories are continuously supported in their efforts. Cities receive step-by-step guidance and have access to tools, materials, and a dedicated regional/national helpdesk.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.globalcovenantofmayors.org/">https://www.globalcovenantofmayors.org/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Renewable energy installations in schools</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;">The pupils of today are the citizens of the tomorrow. Showing them that renewable energy helps power their school be it from wind, solar or other renewables is a positive for learning and gives a demonstration of hope for a better future.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>For this scheme we will seek funding through a Community Municipal Investment/ Climate Bond issue. These have been successful in West Berkshire Council and the London Borough of Islington and provide a return to community investors.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://info.westberks.gov.uk/wbcmi">https://info.westberks.gov.uk/wbcmi</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.abundanceinvestment.com/invest-now/municipal-investments">https://www.abundanceinvestment.com/invest-now/municipal-investments</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Mobilising the community to help tackle the cost of living crisis</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>The massive hike in energy bills caused in large part by our dependence on fossil fuels is something that Kirklees Council needs to mobilise itself to address, and a single budget amendment is not the way to do that. There are things we can do though and establishing a fuel poverty fund to help improve the energy efficiency of people living in cold homes in the owner occupied and private sector. We will seek initially to fund this through a charitable trust that the council will establish and seek contributions too through a variety of methods including an appeal through the Council Tax mailing.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Similar charitable trusts have been established in other parts of the country and have raised hundreds of thousands of pounds. It has initially been tried in rich Council areas in the south of England but it is worth trying here to bolster and support work being done on broader poverty issues by a range of third sector organisations.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgJvUjwrziwxoAOZaqvHIRbCAWbhvQAlKmfhkubxPYjETPuw_OUYMUUluX8kRuXpM_4WiJY4nPiXqu6F-MpDVyQ2JnvwAvX6KBLctTclqhb2iD0XGpxdqsdcVlZg4kq7Slz70m9neUS6YgGgh_d1O_YffzBaAqSrXg8IcmIrXNgee0akE34kfT3JV12Vw=s1080" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgJvUjwrziwxoAOZaqvHIRbCAWbhvQAlKmfhkubxPYjETPuw_OUYMUUluX8kRuXpM_4WiJY4nPiXqu6F-MpDVyQ2JnvwAvX6KBLctTclqhb2iD0XGpxdqsdcVlZg4kq7Slz70m9neUS6YgGgh_d1O_YffzBaAqSrXg8IcmIrXNgee0akE34kfT3JV12Vw=s320" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cllr Sue Lee-Richards</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;"> <b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Supporting active travel</span></b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>We lack a programme to support the development of a protected cycleway network in Kirklees. This proposal will kick start that programme and we would push for a reprioritisation of the West Yorkshire Transport Fund away from road building and road widening projects.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Safer streets for all</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Those of us who have tried to get traffic calming to make people feel safer in their communities from speeding traffic have frequently been frustrated.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Green Councillors have prioritised ward budgets, public realm funding and any other funds we could use to get roads traffic calmed to make roads safer for pedestrians and cyclists. This has been in the face of limited budgets and against Kirklees Highways policy. We need sustained funding to support area wide traffic calming on residential roads so we are able to respond positively to community concerns, take a preventative approach to traffic speeds rather than one rationed on the basis of injury accidents.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Better adult social care</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Positive work was carried out a few years ago by the Administration helping establish Valley Care a community based care cooperative. Our proposal is to provide staff to support the development of Community Based Care Cooperatives in Kirklees. Members of the Care Cooperatives will have a stake in the organisation they work for and the emphasis is on care not the profit motive.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p> We will support the development of Care Cooperatives that will operate on the basis of reinvesting surpluses in improving and extending the services they offer to provide a wide range of care services.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>These cooperatives will provide all staff with at least the living wage, a training programme which supports development and progression. This model of care provision will also play a role in raising standards in the wider care sector.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.valleycare.coop/">https://www.valleycare.coop/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Under development – An Employers Workplace Parking Levy</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;">We believe establishing a workplace parking levy to support public transport and active travel in Kirklees is worth investigating further. Employers with fewer than 10 parking spaces pay nothing at all. Employers offering more than 10 parking spaces pay a fee of £1.17 per day per parking space. There are exemptions for local emergency services, NHS frontline staff and blue badge holders.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>In Nottingham, the Workplace Parking Levy on employers has raised more than £9 million each year, with the revenue used to fund tram infrastructure, a smart card scheme, electric buses and cycling facilities. Leicester are also looking at introducing a Workplace Parking Levy.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Kirklees Climate Commission</b></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: arial;">We are disappointed that there appears to be no dedicated budget line in the Administration’s budget for Kirklees Climate Commision (KCC). Given the importance the Administration have placed on setting up KCC and their position as vice chair we would have expected to see a dedicated budget that KCC would manage independently of the council to facilitate administration, sourcing third party research and working in the communities' interest.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>We would hope that the council can rectify this outside the 2022-23 budget process so the KCC can establish independence in order to demonstrate a degree of self-determination that they can exercise in collaboration with other partners such as the Chamber of Commerce, University of Huddersfield and others.</span></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-13123734689625545952022-03-27T20:24:00.002+01:002022-03-29T11:24:42.801+01:00Kirklees Elections 2022 - Why Kirklees Labour need to lose.<p> </p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-2pUREHdKP-48WMcrRBh7Hc2Ca_k6vThRaIpgpo1q0PUp1NH7HOJu7yZ8KyyQLqHn5PYenqOXxB1gT3H55WFLFeumY2VDU6oPx8G1W96HmwhdMcU0BO7UldZ8b6I9TZvlcko1frVBV4Mw7EcmsLQno6BdSemGKBMf_AM6fAwtPEeaV71h4X-GMdYkA/s960/Save%20Kirklees%20Trees.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-2pUREHdKP-48WMcrRBh7Hc2Ca_k6vThRaIpgpo1q0PUp1NH7HOJu7yZ8KyyQLqHn5PYenqOXxB1gT3H55WFLFeumY2VDU6oPx8G1W96HmwhdMcU0BO7UldZ8b6I9TZvlcko1frVBV4Mw7EcmsLQno6BdSemGKBMf_AM6fAwtPEeaV71h4X-GMdYkA/s320/Save%20Kirklees%20Trees.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Save Kirklees Trees Campaigners</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;">We are heading into another round of Kirklees Elections. In theory it's a Council with a minority Labour Administration but effectively has a majority due to the support of a former Labour Councillor who is now an Independent, frequent absences by some non Labour Councillors and an opposition with differing priorities.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Labour have been a shambles on Kirklees Council. The evidence is plentiful. The debacle over the Council <a href="https://clrandrewcooper.blogspot.com/2021/12/kirklees-reneges-on-rugby-league-museum.html">breaking it's promise to host the National Rugby League Museum in The George Hotel,</a> the A629 road widening project which will see the felling of 126 trees on an iconic entrance way to Huddersfield, Labour Councillors backing the building of a modern hotel on Castle Hill, the site of an Iron Age hill fort and the Leader of the Council proclaiming he had encouraged the environmentally disastrous <a href="https://twitter.com/SaveOurSpen/status/1442433577795325952">Amazon Warehouse development near Cleckheaton then denying later he had any view on the planning application</a>. Leadership on Kirklees Council has been sadly lacking and the Labour Group seem unable or unwilling to address the problem.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">On Climate Change, Labour in Kirklees are a pretty average Council but talk as if they are national leaders. They just aren't. Climate Emergency UK who independently assess councils responses to Climate Change gave Kirklees <a href="https://councilclimatescorecards.uk/#jump=kirklees-council">a humiliating 0% due to their lack of a Climate Action Plan</a> to address the problem. This was confirmed this week when a <a href="https://www.kirklees.gov.uk/beta/climate-emergency/pdf/net-zero-carbon-assessment.pdf">report by the University of Leeds</a> identified the lack of a Climate Action Plan. As the report is published on the Council's website and has the support of the Kirklees Climate Commission it is pretty clear it's accepted by Kirklees. The fact is that many other Councils have got Climate Action Plans and have done much more than Kirklees on Climate Change.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The Labour Administration of course wouldn't accept they are poor and would point to some of their activity which you will find on the Kirklees Website. One such example is the pilot project retrofitting 8 council properties on Abbey Road in Fartown. Labour Cabinet members trooped up there for a photocall with Labour Leader Keir Starmer. It looks like some good work has been carried out there but it is a one off pilot project with no plan to be replicated and no funds to do it again. In the <a href="https://clrandrewcooper.blogspot.com/2022/02/green-party-amendment-to-kirklees.html">Green Group Budget Amendment</a> we proposed using the Energiesprong approach used by among others Nottingham City Council. With no funding coming from central Govt this offered a self funding and economically sustainable model. Labour rejected it. There are other examples <a href="https://clrandrewcooper.blogspot.com/2021/11/and-award-for-missed-opportunities-goes.html">6 years on from the All Party Passivhaus report that recommended making the Passivhaus Standard the norm </a>for Kirklees new build housing projects, Labour are finally doing a 6 house pilot project. We have no idea really what will be learned from the pilot that can't be gleaned from just asking more forward thinking Councils like Exeter City Council that started on the Passivhaus approach 15 years ago. It is another example of timidity and tokenism when we need real leadership.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So the possibility of a Labour Council with a majority doesn't exactly fill me with hope and joy just potential disappointment. Don't get me wrong there are plenty of good people in the Labour Party and I would much rather have a Labour Party that I could work with than what we have in Kirklees at present. So on May 5th vote Green, elect more Green Councillors and let's play our proper part in tackling climate change and the cost of living crisis.</span></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-75610558614441822182022-02-06T13:42:00.001+00:002022-02-06T17:02:23.232+00:00Green Party Amendment to the Kirklees Council Budget 2022/23<p> <b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Starting the retrofit
revolution in Kirklees</span></span></b><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkRqV4CzEecBuBqLy3lrnp_Zvh7UUxVxCBq-lHxxWaWmLqWIe4NsCWQh9yfTVi2HKIUTxnwJiOQufh8ycX8LC7bVxH9itTKTBN-CWoyvj2N5alFTobWit1gOvtb1SPTlc6FoDj66QA25lPju1tPbO2e1mOyMh1_lIAfx-_I6yMD5aVuSwfRKhJKTM4OA=s960" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkRqV4CzEecBuBqLy3lrnp_Zvh7UUxVxCBq-lHxxWaWmLqWIe4NsCWQh9yfTVi2HKIUTxnwJiOQufh8ycX8LC7bVxH9itTKTBN-CWoyvj2N5alFTobWit1gOvtb1SPTlc6FoDj66QA25lPju1tPbO2e1mOyMh1_lIAfx-_I6yMD5aVuSwfRKhJKTM4OA=w446-h336" width="446" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Cllr Cooper visiting Energiesprong homes in Nottingham</b></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">The Council has made a start on
retrofitting its own housing stock. This is positive but what is lacking is a
financially sustainable model, which can deliver improvement to homes at scale
to a zero-energy standard. Our proposal based on the Energiesprong (energy leap)
model addresses this and provides a way of building the capacity and capability
to deliver for owner occupiers and the wider housing sector.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Energiesprong work with local Councils on developing a
programme to deliver warmer homes through a retrofit programme delivering a
home which is net zero energy, meaning it generates the total amount of energy
required for its heating, hot water and electrical appliances. It also provides superior indoor comfort.
This is achieved using prefabricated facades, insulated rooftops with solar
panels, smart heating, and ventilation and cooling installations. A
refurbishment comes with a long-year performance warranty on both the indoor
climate and the energy performance for up to 40 years. A complete home makeover
can be completed in as little as a day!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span>Energiesprong are not a contractor themselves but work with
councils to help procure contractors to deliver to the Energiesprong
specification.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Councils such as Nottingham, Exeter and a number of London
Boroughs are already working together on Energiesprong projects as part of the
Retrofit Accelerator Homes Investment Partnership. They share best practice and
expertise and have been successful in a number of funding bids to government drawing
in millions to support the development of the Energiesprong model.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>How much does it cost?</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span>The cost for an initial 50 properties would be around
£85,000/property. The expectation is that for future rounds of properties that
this would reduce to around £55,000/property as economies of scale are realised.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><b>How is it paid for?</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span>There is some initial outlay for setting up the
Energiesprong approach through the Housing Revenue Account but as the capital
costs come down the expectation is that it would become self-financing through
lower maintenance and servicing costs e.g., no gas safety checks, lower
maintenance etc and through charging a comfort charge to the tenant.
Energiesprong guarantee that the fuel bill that the tenants pay plus the
comfort charge will be less than they were paying in energy costs for their
home before refurbishment.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.energiesprong.uk/">https://www.energiesprong.uk/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.energiesprong.uk/newspage/innovation-partnership-why-a-new-approach-to-retrofit-procurement-is-key-to-net-zero">https://www.energiesprong.uk/newspage/innovation-partnership-why-a-new-approach-to-retrofit-procurement-is-key-to-net-zero</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.ukgbc.org/news/nottingham-first-to-adopt-revolutionary-energiesprong-housing-approach/">https://www.ukgbc.org/news/nottingham-first-to-adopt-revolutionary-energiesprong-housing-approach/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Passivhaus or equivalent
as standard on all Council new build projects</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgmP9x60lujjeQYZ1fEO4fJ-FcE_2ZtebJ6oNlz8e_RekXWbnLQJM8m00CxPa6UTynHZMXRJ_aAond3sFd14YBJIZpMLLgguLpb9psEKJB-kCix8WjjSgh9ZJ1csF-9OGAlbNZ9NSVfn3VksdqbNToaYDAHFZyWWuSYywx_QZUCb9jZaRoDSMxDL5Uj_Q=s730" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="730" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgmP9x60lujjeQYZ1fEO4fJ-FcE_2ZtebJ6oNlz8e_RekXWbnLQJM8m00CxPa6UTynHZMXRJ_aAond3sFd14YBJIZpMLLgguLpb9psEKJB-kCix8WjjSgh9ZJ1csF-9OGAlbNZ9NSVfn3VksdqbNToaYDAHFZyWWuSYywx_QZUCb9jZaRoDSMxDL5Uj_Q=s320" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">5 years after the all party
Passivhaus group recommended that the Council build its new developments to the
passivhaus standard Kirklees is now doing a pilot project on 12 houses. The
lack of a policy on the standard for new build housing in Kirklees at a time
when we ought to be leading by example is shameful. The purpose of the pilot has
not been explained. What can be learnt by building in Kirklees that can’t be learnt
from more progressive Councils in other parts of the country such as Exeter
City Council? <o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>The lack of a policy is expensive as one-off projects like
Kirklees passivhaus pilot come at a cost premium. Having a high energy
efficiency standard means developers can invest in skills locally, build
capacity and the capability to deliver to the passivhaus standard or
equivalent. We should also be seeking funding from the West Yorkshire Mayoral
Combined Authority to help pay for the 4% uplift in costs through gainshare or
other regional funding sources.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.apse.org.uk/apse/index.cfm/news/articles/20181/passivhaus-exeter-city-council-leading-by-example/#">https://www.apse.org.uk/apse/index.cfm/news/articles/20181/passivhaus-exeter-city-council-leading-by-example/#</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Solar PV Panels on all
Council new build projects as standard</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>With rising energy prices we need to find ways of reducing
energy demand in the home. So, as well as ‘fabric first’ insulation measures we
also should use renewables as much as possible on site. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Funding could be sought from Combined Authority Gainshare
funding but failing that HRA funds could be utilised to achieve this.</span><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></b></p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi2iI3AMvhojlyuaghF4Zgqyy08NFLxBoZ19YVklmWFfrM2ZMpmP11oldB4n0j47-kYboKLqJkN2q69o2gUWToMroOqjncqbbF4wPxDsAKtaLYv16JxoEGdIqLxy-TOPHDrwS5r_h_Dy1bHIIDYB8NywLY42A-iPOULpUaFWv4oELb41V9RhpneGwqtog=s960" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="432" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi2iI3AMvhojlyuaghF4Zgqyy08NFLxBoZ19YVklmWFfrM2ZMpmP11oldB4n0j47-kYboKLqJkN2q69o2gUWToMroOqjncqbbF4wPxDsAKtaLYv16JxoEGdIqLxy-TOPHDrwS5r_h_Dy1bHIIDYB8NywLY42A-iPOULpUaFWv4oELb41V9RhpneGwqtog=s320" width="144" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cllr Karen Allison</td></tr></tbody></table>Engaging
the community in climate action</span></b></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Tackling climate change has got to be made real to local
people. Involving people in positive projects helps give people a sense of well
being and not just thinking they are at the mercy of decisions by national
governments and decisions at global climate summits.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>We can help them feel empowered and involved in addressing
the threat to all our futures. For the next 2 years through the Place partnerships,
we wish to support a range of community lead projects to address climate
change.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>This could be improving the energy efficiency of public
buildings, tree planting, projects to support biodiversity and nature-based
flood prevention measures.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Learning from others</span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYQHewACJdwbpOQzCTW8LsjFFPEJsPHZ8VZGLbbJrjhVfia9F8UvO95pHHHGm1ua37PkiKFlnajpPQwrBOHQ4Ha2vubp6odEJUzBtyNBeWxJLsWNNG50gGPIhzt4E-iTbVUhDkxLJfCVSn4nMef_X8Yedfowg27cWfABo2VEzwT2gDKu5DqaDUNHPUNg=s246" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="205" data-original-width="246" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYQHewACJdwbpOQzCTW8LsjFFPEJsPHZ8VZGLbbJrjhVfia9F8UvO95pHHHGm1ua37PkiKFlnajpPQwrBOHQ4Ha2vubp6odEJUzBtyNBeWxJLsWNNG50gGPIhzt4E-iTbVUhDkxLJfCVSn4nMef_X8Yedfowg27cWfABo2VEzwT2gDKu5DqaDUNHPUNg=w227-h189" width="227" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />Kirklees
needs to approach its role in addressing climate change with humility. We
frequently hear from Labour Cabinet members about how we are ‘the best’ in this
policy area. We aren’t. There are positive things happening on the climate
agenda in Kirklees but we are not forerunners or innovators in addressing
climate change. The lack of a climate action plan lead to the Council getting a
0% rating from Climate Emergency UK earlier this year. Joining the Global Covenant
of Mayors would provide us with valuable insight and support form the
international community of local and regional authorities addressing climate
change. It works to provide value to participating councils by mobilizing the
critical financing and technical assistance that members require to access
investment. The Global Covenant of Mayors ensures that signatories are
continuously supported in their efforts. Cities receive step-by-step guidance
and have access to tools, materials, and a dedicated regional/national
helpdesk.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.globalcovenantofmayors.org/">https://www.globalcovenantofmayors.org/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Renewable energy installations
in schools</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;">The pupils of today are the citizens of the tomorrow. Showing
them that renewable energy helps power their school be it from wind, solar or
other renewables is a positive for learning and gives a demonstration of hope
for a better future.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>For this scheme we will seek funding through a Community Municipal
Investment/ Climate Bond issue. These have been successful in West Berkshire Council
and the London Borough of Islington and provide a return to community
investors.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://info.westberks.gov.uk/wbcmi">https://info.westberks.gov.uk/wbcmi</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.abundanceinvestment.com/invest-now/municipal-investments">https://www.abundanceinvestment.com/invest-now/municipal-investments</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Mobilising the community
to help tackle the cost of living crisis</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>The massive hike in energy bills caused in large part by our
dependence on fossil fuels is something that Kirklees Council needs to mobilise
itself to address, and a single budget amendment is not the way to do that.
There are things we can do though and establishing a fuel poverty fund to help
improve the energy efficiency of people living in cold homes in the owner
occupied and private sector. We will seek initially to fund this through a
charitable trust that the council will establish and seek contributions too
through a variety of methods including an appeal through the Council Tax mailing.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Similar charitable trusts have been established in other parts
of the country and have raised hundreds of thousands of pounds. It has initially
been tried in rich Council areas in the south of England but it is worth trying
here to bolster and support work being done on broader poverty issues by a
range of third sector organisations.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgJvUjwrziwxoAOZaqvHIRbCAWbhvQAlKmfhkubxPYjETPuw_OUYMUUluX8kRuXpM_4WiJY4nPiXqu6F-MpDVyQ2JnvwAvX6KBLctTclqhb2iD0XGpxdqsdcVlZg4kq7Slz70m9neUS6YgGgh_d1O_YffzBaAqSrXg8IcmIrXNgee0akE34kfT3JV12Vw=s1080" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgJvUjwrziwxoAOZaqvHIRbCAWbhvQAlKmfhkubxPYjETPuw_OUYMUUluX8kRuXpM_4WiJY4nPiXqu6F-MpDVyQ2JnvwAvX6KBLctTclqhb2iD0XGpxdqsdcVlZg4kq7Slz70m9neUS6YgGgh_d1O_YffzBaAqSrXg8IcmIrXNgee0akE34kfT3JV12Vw=s320" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cllr Sue Lee-Richards</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;"> <b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Supporting
active travel</span></b></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>We lack a programme to support the development of a
protected cycleway network in Kirklees. This proposal will kick start that
programme and we would push for a reprioritisation of the West Yorkshire
Transport Fund away from road building and road widening projects.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Safer streets for all</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Those of us who have tried to get traffic calming to make
people feel safer in their communities from speeding traffic have frequently
been frustrated.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Green Councillors have prioritised ward budgets, public
realm funding and any other funds we could use to get roads traffic calmed to
make roads safer for pedestrians and cyclists. This has been in the face of
limited budgets and against Kirklees Highways policy. We need sustained funding
to support area wide traffic calming on residential roads so we are able to
respond positively to community concerns, take a preventative approach to
traffic speeds rather than one rationed on the basis of injury accidents.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Better adult social care</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Positive work was carried out a few years ago by the
Administration helping establish Valley Care a community based care
cooperative. Our proposal is to provide staff to support the development of
Community Based Care Cooperatives in Kirklees. Members of the Care Cooperatives
will have a stake in the organisation they work for and the emphasis is on care
not the profit motive.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p> We will support the
development of Care Cooperatives that will operate on the basis of reinvesting
surpluses in improving and extending the services they offer to provide a wide
range of care services.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>These cooperatives will provide all staff with at least the
living wage, a training programme which supports development and progression.
This model of care provision will also play a role in raising standards in the
wider care sector.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://www.valleycare.coop/">https://www.valleycare.coop/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Under development – A
Kirklees Workplace Parking Levy</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>Not included in this Green Party Budget amendment but we
believe establishing a workplace parking levy to support public transport and
active travel in Kirklees is worth investigating further. Employers with fewer
than 10 parking spaces pay nothing at all.
Employers offering more than 10 parking spaces pay a fee of £1.17 per
day per parking space. There are
exemptions for local emergency services, NHS frontline staff and blue badge
holders.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>In Nottingham, the Workplace Parking Levy on employers has
raised more than £9 million each year, with the revenue used to fund tram
infrastructure, a smart card scheme, electric buses and cycling facilities.
Leicester are also looking at introducing a Workplace Parking Levy.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Kirklees Climate Commission</b></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: arial;">We are disappointed that there appears to be no dedicated
budget line in the Administration’s budget for Kirklees Climate Commision
(KCC). Given the importance the Administration have placed on setting up KCC
and their position as vice chair we would have expected to see a dedicated
budget that KCC would manage independently of the council to facilitate
administration, sourcing third party research and working in the communities'
interest.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p>We would hope that the council can rectify this outside
the 2022-23 budget process so the KCC can establish independence in order to
demonstrate a degree of self-determination that they can exercise in
collaboration with other partners such as the Chamber of Commerce, University
of Huddersfield and others.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjv7eBbDFmAGkm-cgJYhgo7fdZdiPIO8us6Dg_4uadysg1FUxU72dSvRaEWphiZVES0dmDB2lyY5UkjX3XCAAhfmhCMcMb_M8gyAJ4Q2czkgl0vpP0efsiWBM8VStmTjUrf_y71PmPghufJqdLvCoNocqyjhuWkUtwycH9ieHKAIyjgbuHajLMQbPg9vQ=s559" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="548" data-original-width="559" height="629" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjv7eBbDFmAGkm-cgJYhgo7fdZdiPIO8us6Dg_4uadysg1FUxU72dSvRaEWphiZVES0dmDB2lyY5UkjX3XCAAhfmhCMcMb_M8gyAJ4Q2czkgl0vpP0efsiWBM8VStmTjUrf_y71PmPghufJqdLvCoNocqyjhuWkUtwycH9ieHKAIyjgbuHajLMQbPg9vQ=w640-h629" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhuVuvlzGQczXxltpTEzNfi7S16nxBvSAtNBmcjLQTG7pym4i0LKa5bp7lchL4u3RMN_jON2nl-d29ZTZC8mQzFeDiiWnrq5hMSCLXOwwXDuIaKGXMhxFZxPUfUkI8VUDhsFMTelvybzEmR2ks6bxgXyUK1zM8QpxSGlv4hmTvbxbs9aqnePFRcT6POFQ=s565" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="401" data-original-width="565" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhuVuvlzGQczXxltpTEzNfi7S16nxBvSAtNBmcjLQTG7pym4i0LKa5bp7lchL4u3RMN_jON2nl-d29ZTZC8mQzFeDiiWnrq5hMSCLXOwwXDuIaKGXMhxFZxPUfUkI8VUDhsFMTelvybzEmR2ks6bxgXyUK1zM8QpxSGlv4hmTvbxbs9aqnePFRcT6POFQ=w640-h454" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-43252602411363316912021-12-10T23:23:00.002+00:002021-12-11T07:58:02.549+00:00Kirklees reneges on Rugby League museum promise<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiq7IQo2RwY13VHnHRu81uEZ4BbZnHMmZS5EaoTCECFWhBrvKvP916c9sYI7itMWyWCx5LfQBa4Fyhf4pVGBbv0TkB_CcWSXrd-xoePzcIossNbX0s0BJBjVbVIgcgk29Nrpf25vmwQrl1OYkrx3l3Uk9QS9ZgDSYeGm0i474VUmFT0AWeoml7uEbS9aA=s1200" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiq7IQo2RwY13VHnHRu81uEZ4BbZnHMmZS5EaoTCECFWhBrvKvP916c9sYI7itMWyWCx5LfQBa4Fyhf4pVGBbv0TkB_CcWSXrd-xoePzcIossNbX0s0BJBjVbVIgcgk29Nrpf25vmwQrl1OYkrx3l3Uk9QS9ZgDSYeGm0i474VUmFT0AWeoml7uEbS9aA=w400-h266" width="400" /></a></div><p>Last year, with much fanfare, Kirklees Council announced that Rugby League would be 'coming home' to its birthplace, The George Hotel in Huddersfield, after the Council won a tightly contested bid against other towns to host the National Rugby League Museum. It was the fact that the sport originated from a meeting in The George Hotel in 1895 that was the clincher. At the opening representatives from the Council and Rugby League Cares held a press conference. The Leader of the Council Shabir Pandor said,</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Montserrat, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 18px;"><i>"This is absolutely fantastic news and we’re really excited to get started and bring Rugby League home"</i></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Montserrat, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 18px;"><i>“It is so much more than a building to local people and to Rugby League fans across the world. This is where it all began for Rugby League and there is no better place to create a museum that celebrates and remembers the history of the game.”</i></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Montserrat, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 18px;">News broke last month that Kirklees was to renege on it's promise to have the Rugby League museum in the hotel. This has provoked much anger by Rugby League fans around the world as the Council had used The George Hotel to secure the Museum and also some external funding. The Council now says that the business case just doesn't stack up and so it would be now sited in the 'Cultural Heart' of the town that is being developed as part of the Huddersfield Blueprint. At Wednesday's Council meeting, in response to a question I asked on the proposals, West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin let slip that the Council was proposing to put the Museum in what is currently the Huddersfield Library and Art Gallery on the other side of town from 'The George'. As someone who is elected to represent the ward that includes the Town Centre finding out this way, by accident was to say the least annoying.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Montserrat, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 18px;">When the Council said it was buying The George Hotel I was very supportive but at the time I asked to see what the Business Plan was going to look like and kept asking. More recently Conservative Councillors have also been asking about the Business Plans. Now we are told the numbers for including a Rugby League Museum in The George don't stack up, but still we haven't seen the papers that demonstrate this. As a local Councillor I'm just asked to trust the judgement of officers with no detail, no business case, no options to weigh up. It is all deeply disappointing and the big question is how did we end up in a position where the Council made such a firm and public commitment and a partnership with the Rugby League and then had to make such an embarrassing climbdown? As someone who is elected to represent the Council I would really like to know the answer to that question.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Montserrat, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 18px;">A bit of nostalgia now. Here's the joint Kirklees/Rugby League event announcing the Museum last year.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eFTzQUrytHQ" width="320" youtube-src-id="eFTzQUrytHQ"></iframe></div><br /><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Montserrat, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 18px;"><br /></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-73415450366133002152021-11-15T14:35:00.002+00:002021-11-15T14:35:53.064+00:00COP26 - What did it mean for Local and Regional Government?<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOpqUmBz1OSwrz3Or3m_DeCF0yR2W67OtewzHqo0AyehRkeCHO84XphqC3RoA3euiua_EjWoldZS5l1JtXhuBcQPNieOYRBrvaFwWxQjeKFaRBCI0qJgsx5b1j-5-y7CbLCzo-0PsJbOZv/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOpqUmBz1OSwrz3Or3m_DeCF0yR2W67OtewzHqo0AyehRkeCHO84XphqC3RoA3euiua_EjWoldZS5l1JtXhuBcQPNieOYRBrvaFwWxQjeKFaRBCI0qJgsx5b1j-5-y7CbLCzo-0PsJbOZv/" width="240" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">COP26 resulted in what is officially known as the Glasgow Climate Pact. This is the document that included the now infamous ‘phasing down’ rather than ‘phasing out of coal reference. Many of us feel immense dismay about the COP26 outcome but within the document it is worth knowing what is in it that is relevant to our local Councils.</span><p></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">There are several key references in the <a href="https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/cop26_auv_2f_cover_decision.pdf">‘Glasgow Climate Pact’</a> document. There is a mention in </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">the Preamble to the pact </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>“Recognizing the important role of indigenous peoples, local communities and civil </i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>society, including youth and children, in addressing and responding to climate change, and </i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>highlighting the urgent need for multilevel and cooperative action”</i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Multilevel action means local government and it’s important it is recognised in the preamble to the Glasgow Climate Pact as it gives legitimacy and recognition to national government for the role councils play in addressing climate change. </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">At the UK level the key body we have to key into is the Local Net Zero Forum which is a body where national and local government come together to work on action to address climate change from a local perspective. This was announced as part of the Net Zero Strategy in October so we know nothing about how it will operate or it’s terms of reference. <a href="https://clrandrewcooper.blogspot.com/2021/11/uk-government-finally-implements-cop24.html">The Local Net Zero Forum has its roots in the agreement at COP24, 3 years ago.</a> As well as Government Departments it includes the Local Government Association so we Greens have the opportunity to get our input through that route as members of the LGA Independent Group.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The importance of involving local communities on action to address climate change is also mentioned,</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>“Emphasizes the important role of indigenous peoples’ and local communities’ culture </i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>and knowledge in effective action on climate change, and urges Parties to actively involve </i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>indigenous peoples and local communities in designing and implementing climate action and </i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>to engage with the second three-year workplan for implementing the functions of the Local </i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform, for 2022–2024;”</i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The only way that local communities can be effectively engaged is through the facilitating role that local Councils play as the body that works most closely with local communities. There is no structured way that this would happen coming from a national level so each Council will do it in its own way. There needs to be a more organised and structured way for Councils to engage their communities in climate action.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Getting the Local Government Association to do some work on this and get it recognised by national government would be one way to progress this.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">There is a special mention for ‘youth’ and in the context of local government</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>“Urges Parties and stakeholders to ensure meaningful youth participation and representation in multilateral, national and local decision-making processes, including under the Convention and the Paris Agreement;”</i></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the first time I’ve seen a specific role for youth in a COP outcome document and also in reference to local decision making processes. As with local communities it seems it is up to local councils as to how they do this with no specific guidance from national government. Again some guidance on how this can be done meaningfully would be helpful.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-59916639670936033052021-11-10T08:36:00.002+00:002021-11-10T08:36:21.373+00:00COP26 countries cop out!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwbGpsM2chRJOZ59dEoR9Ak2gemJfV1c9QIf-bvZ37R2adoBXL_Gj8iBfJEwXx-2rnlDcObPYLzQN-GGb3OgSr4fDWbIounGqRWtKcc5fAU4XxT0kubGBEDpSEgOPd1Unpq-5YhgQ-tpsY/s960/COP26+Hygiene+kit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="960" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwbGpsM2chRJOZ59dEoR9Ak2gemJfV1c9QIf-bvZ37R2adoBXL_Gj8iBfJEwXx-2rnlDcObPYLzQN-GGb3OgSr4fDWbIounGqRWtKcc5fAU4XxT0kubGBEDpSEgOPd1Unpq-5YhgQ-tpsY/w400-h185/COP26+Hygiene+kit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This hygiene kit isn't working. COP26 still stinks</td></tr></tbody></table><p> At COP26 yesterday I went to the UN Environment Programme's Press Conference to watch them present the findings of their 2021 Emissions Gap report. This is where UN scientists get their chance to number crunch the pledges that countries have made to reduce their carbon emissions and see if they have any significant impact on helping achieve the Paris Climate goals. The short answer is a big NO.</p><p>The panel were pretty scathing. " There's a leadership gap not an emissions gap" was damning of the world's political leaders. One particular point they made was countries that were making Net Zero by 2050 statements with no convincing plan to achieve them. Australia being the most obvious example.</p><p>If (and it is a very big if) we believe all the countries statements produce the emissions then we are still heading to miss both the 1.5 and 2 degree C Paris Climate goals. The UNEP report says we need a 4 fold increase in ambition to reach 4 degrees temperature rise and a 7 fold increase to achieve 1.5 degrees. It is that stark. That is all if they keep to their promises. 7 of the G20 countries are currently 'off track' with their carbon savings so that is to say the least unhelpful.</p><p>What now? We have 3 days left. Apparently Boris is coming back to the COP summit. Given a large part of this process is about keeping commitments and trust why does that not fill me with confidence?</p><p>Here's Juice Media's from Australia's take</p><p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1FqXTCvDLeo" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-8393778481552178502021-11-07T18:55:00.000+00:002021-11-07T18:55:42.519+00:00UK Government finally implements COP24 - 3 years later<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOThr6pPJdfnr91kLuc5x47uIB1LzH6ISjMbjJArlrKzXegZni0e9cfCeMhF1wKArH05-ZW9JZNAdpNRZEOTT1_kl4gYwHal9nk63is6hsYHaEcCOdak4PjuHIUWpQOnuIAFgLgzkCaJ0P/s774/Zero+Carbon+Strategy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="774" data-original-width="595" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOThr6pPJdfnr91kLuc5x47uIB1LzH6ISjMbjJArlrKzXegZni0e9cfCeMhF1wKArH05-ZW9JZNAdpNRZEOTT1_kl4gYwHal9nk63is6hsYHaEcCOdak4PjuHIUWpQOnuIAFgLgzkCaJ0P/s320/Zero+Carbon+Strategy.JPG" width="246" /></a></div>COP24 in Katowice, Poland was 3 years ago now and I'm now sitting in my son's flat in Glasgow as a delegate to COP26. Back then I was a delegate for the EU Committee of the Regions but Brexit has closed that avenue to me and I'm now a delegate with the <a href="https://greeneconomicsinstitute.org.uk/">Green Economics Institute</a> so "Thanks" to Miriam Kennet of the GEI for that.<p></p><p>At COP24 I was on a mission to get the concept of<a href="https://clrandrewcooper.blogspot.com/2017/09/locally-determined-contributions-new.html"> Locally Determined Contributions (LDCs)</a> accepted by the UNFCCC. LDCs were to give the ability for Local and Regional Authorities to set their own carbon reduction targets in conjunction with Nationally Determined Contributions which are the responsibility of national governments. This would establish a clearer role for sub-national bodies like Councils and Devolved Administrations in taking action to reduce carbon emissions and help towards achieving the Paris Climate goals. I had some excellent support from staff at the EU Committee of the Regions and Locally and Regionally Determined Contributions were backed by the LGMA, the body that represented Local Government globally. </p><p> In the end we didn't get LDC's adopted but we had moved the debate significantly and there was<span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> a statement in the final text on how to assess </span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> </span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Nationally Determined Contributions that referred to "preparing implementation plans to include domestic institutional arrangements, public participation and engagement with local communities”. In the UK context this basically meant Governments would have to work more closely with Councils on action to address climate change. Then (in the UK at least) nothing happened. Councils still had no official role. the UK Government continued to make statements and policy about climate change with no significant involvement with Local and Regional Authorities. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">The Green Party made one of our goals in the run up to COP26 to push Government to set up a joint Central/Local Government Taskforce to put pressure on Government to act. </span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Then at the end of last month the Government produced their Net Zero Strategy and in it there was a statement saying they would establish a,</span></p><p><i><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">"</span>Local Net
Zero Forum to ensure that there is direct input
from local leaders. Chaired by BEIS, the Forum
will be cross departmental and bring together
national and local government senior officials
on a regular basis to discuss policy and
delivery options on net zero. The forum will
build on our current engagement mechanisms
through the representative bodies such as
the Local Government Association (LGA),
Association for Public Service Excellence
(APSE), Core Cities and the Association of
Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning
& Transport (ADEPT)".</i></p><p>So a Taskforce and a success of sorts! </p><p>I first raised the need for National and Local Governments to work more closely together in Paris at COP21 back in 2015 in a side event where I was representing the EU Committee of the Regions. So my own involvement in calling for something like this degree of cooperation is nearly 7 years old. All that really has happened, with the establishment of the Net Zero Forum is that a structure is now in place so we can have discussions, there is still a lot of actual work to do! Though the Forum will be chaired by BEIS the culture of the Forum should be that all participants come to the table as equals and that it is not dominated by national government. We need initiatives for policy change to be able to come forward from local government. After all it will be councils that will have to deliver a lot of the action needed to reduce emissions so why not allow the practitioners the chance to be the policy makers as well?</p><p>There is a lot to do. Changes to Building Regulations, a revised National Planning Policy Framework that takes into account climate change, addressing skills gaps and the need for a large scale domestic retrofit programme, all these need serious attention to get us on track towards a genuinely Zero Carbon Strategy for the UK. </p><p>Lets get to work!</p><p><br /></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-73764576740233108282021-11-06T10:58:00.001+00:002021-11-06T10:58:42.953+00:00And the award for missed opportunities goes to........ Kirklees Council<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKcmfWs3iXjZRA135G_jyUhWv_vzfymTbW4DAm3eBlviV6QWAWwyfB2YfzO6nzKOMcRRFpszQW6CPo1OBz8oHQ_r7K_6pTLp1D-NOO6wvgTwqgQ0X6HquWQwrKvOgpMy8yyAfTDzb2bodS/s225/And+the+award+goes+to.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKcmfWs3iXjZRA135G_jyUhWv_vzfymTbW4DAm3eBlviV6QWAWwyfB2YfzO6nzKOMcRRFpszQW6CPo1OBz8oHQ_r7K_6pTLp1D-NOO6wvgTwqgQ0X6HquWQwrKvOgpMy8yyAfTDzb2bodS/s0/And+the+award+goes+to.png" width="225" /></a></div><p>The word on the street is that Kirklees Council is Award chasing. Don't get me wrong I think it is important that work by some of Kirklees Council's excellent staff is recognised but it would be interesting to see the ratio of awards applied for, how many were shortlisted and how many resulted in winners. Among other things Kirklees Council has recently won <a href="https://kirkleestogether.co.uk/2021/10/20/catering-business-of-the-year-award-for-our-school-catering-service/">Catering Business of the Year </a>which I'm sure is well deserved but if there is a push to chase awards for their own sake that would be worrying</p><p></p><p>Another Council that has received recognition this week is the Green Party /Lib Dem Administration in York. It has been named by the <a href="https://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/19691767.york-council-joins-uns-international-centre-excellence/">United Nations as a Global Centre of Excellence for high performance buildings </a>- one of 26 around the world to mark COP26 including New York, Pittsburgh and Renfewshire in Scotland. This has been lead by Green Party Councillor Denise Craghill the Cabinet Member responsible for housing and is a recognition of the Councils plans to build an<a href="https://www.passivhaustrust.org.uk/news/detail/?nId=933"> impressive 600 houses to the Passivhaus standard</a> There has been a big push in the Green Party to get action the Passivhaus Standard more widely adopted and I wrote a <a href="https://www.passivhaustrust.org.uk/UserFiles/File/PH%20planning/Green%20Party%20PassivHaus%20Flat%20Pack_v7.pdf">Passivhaus Flatpack Campaign Pack</a> back in 2016 and around the same time I chaired an All-Party Policy Group at Kirklees Council which in It's final report recommended the following to Kirklees Labour Cabinet:-</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnC_pi0FIZe5Dx-0DJqXfDisl_uTNNTVFJxUf2tiRAgrdZxK04sLfbu8nTWGb2FcgH22KZCDzlxEE82qcwGG9G6-IRb1K9CGQlD29x9Jsk8fYGowUIz3v8u0DTFl_b92JzuCSIFSpSaR9-/s884/Passivhaus+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="662" data-original-width="884" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnC_pi0FIZe5Dx-0DJqXfDisl_uTNNTVFJxUf2tiRAgrdZxK04sLfbu8nTWGb2FcgH22KZCDzlxEE82qcwGG9G6-IRb1K9CGQlD29x9Jsk8fYGowUIz3v8u0DTFl_b92JzuCSIFSpSaR9-/w400-h300/Passivhaus+1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqmzdQnkoGXHvb9kZ83Ai13bgE8SSgSob0F4Gh-vNvXtL-WFNsibMcOf2eUuUVZqZSas9y8qBXsbkzXFys2_CIOusRb4J1OUZ54YOImfGXXdoln2JfPhcikPK734Kb5gNrb5Ocs5mnyGQb/s866/Passivhaus+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="866" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqmzdQnkoGXHvb9kZ83Ai13bgE8SSgSob0F4Gh-vNvXtL-WFNsibMcOf2eUuUVZqZSas9y8qBXsbkzXFys2_CIOusRb4J1OUZ54YOImfGXXdoln2JfPhcikPK734Kb5gNrb5Ocs5mnyGQb/w400-h281/Passivhaus+2.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQz6KNM5YTTX-SpJ37nuPYxfQN5UR-ETZrL_hpFBvYOSYd1XIlYc-GyI4N9E7MDlI5EL6A6WZeY7cxJ3n-uSFH3oTv_OlS8WANy8Gz0BlSDpK8BSwLepfk9WOI0DOZCXpjdk9zgXMEx92B/s877/Passivhaus+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="877" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQz6KNM5YTTX-SpJ37nuPYxfQN5UR-ETZrL_hpFBvYOSYd1XIlYc-GyI4N9E7MDlI5EL6A6WZeY7cxJ3n-uSFH3oTv_OlS8WANy8Gz0BlSDpK8BSwLepfk9WOI0DOZCXpjdk9zgXMEx92B/w400-h254/Passivhaus+3.JPG" width="400" /></a></div> Repeated question on how the Cabinet would respond to the recommendations were met with silence or misinformed myths about the Passivhaus standard. Now 5 years later the Council is carrying out a 12 house pilot project. At the last Council meeting I asked what the point of the pilot was? What will we learn that we don't already know from the now numerous projects around the country and places where they are now working to mainstream the standard. We should drop the pilot and go straight to more ambitious passivhaus projects at scale.<div><br /></div><div>To say I am frustrated at the timidity and lack of ambition by Labour politicians on action to reduce carbon emissions is an understatement. Political power is a precious thing and wasting the opportunities it brings to bring positive change is a crime.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here's "Drop the pilot" by Joan Armatrading</div><div><br /></div><div><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/x-lme0G6pOo" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196059482061221339.post-68475795193688595142021-10-24T17:05:00.001+01:002021-10-24T21:11:16.970+01:00West Yorkshire Pension Fund and Divestment - Some progress but painfully slow!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBu33XjL_bRxX84qDTab-RL1QUx76Odm0bUOGeg03HGCYnKklKiggIfKGchR9zu3MRW4cV1rgUXQvrVg9759wM8TxFi7g_X7O00eoriAvF_fC-HBI476SDCVY3uPDQiTo-1cfpKWOTNr5H/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="100" data-original-width="430" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBu33XjL_bRxX84qDTab-RL1QUx76Odm0bUOGeg03HGCYnKklKiggIfKGchR9zu3MRW4cV1rgUXQvrVg9759wM8TxFi7g_X7O00eoriAvF_fC-HBI476SDCVY3uPDQiTo-1cfpKWOTNr5H/w640-h149/image.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There was some<a href="https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/news/west-yorkshire-news/calls-huge-council-pension-fund-21863144"> welcome news from Labour Cabinet Member Paul Davis</a> when I asked a question regarding fossil fuel divestment from West Yorkshire Pension Funds. I'd been prompted to ask the question as Calderdale and Wakefield Councils had already indicated that they would back divestment so I wondered what Kirklees were doing. A Green Party motion by our Bradford Councillors on Divestment from the West Yorkshire Pension Fund had failed only days before but that was probably more about the fact that it didn't come from the Labour Party rather than the rights and wrongs of the issue. So that just leaves Leeds to give an indication of where it stands. During the Mayoral Election campaign Labour's Tracy Brabin gave an equivocal response to divestment saying she supported it but that had to be balanced with </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://fossilfreewypf.wordpress.com/" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"<span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">the serious responsibilities it has to the thousands of retired public sector workers who are members of the scheme.”</span></i></span></a></div><p><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Tracy seems to be pushing on divestment now as a possible 'Win' coming up to COP26 but the Mayor has no direct influence over the Pension Fund but certainly has influence through Labour Councillors who sit on the Investment Panel.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The really irritating thing is that a<a href="https://clrandrewcooper.blogspot.com/2015/10/kirklees-greens-fossil-fuel-divestment.html"> Green Party motion calling for divestment from the fund was passed in 2015</a> by Kirklees Council. It said,</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"Kirklees will ask our representatives on the West Yorkshire Pension Fund - Investment Advisory Panel to call on all Pension Trustees to exercise their fiduciary duty and to call for a review of WYPF fossil fuel investments in the light of climate risk posed by fossil fuel equities".</i></span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Over the next week or so we will see if there is any movement on this at all and WYPF does divest from fossil fuels. If it did however that could not be the end of the story because the fund also invests in AMP Capital, the Australian company that owns Leeds Bradford Airport. It has an investment with them worth £1.3 million. <a href="https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/news/leeds-news/damning-leeds-bradford-airport-report-20645979">Leeds Bradford Airport expansion plans would if realised result in a huge increase in emissions </a>completely demolishing any chance of West Yorkshire achieving it's zero carbon economy by 2038 target. <a href="https://www.lgcplus.com/politics/devolution-and-economic-growth/brabin-equivocal-on-leeds-bradford-airport-expansion-29-04-2021/">The problem for Labour is that West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin has at best been equivocal in her stance on Leeds Bradford Airport </a>and avoided discussing it during the Mayoral campaign. I witnessed this first hand when she refused to answer a yes/no question on Airport expansion during the recording of the BBC's Mayoral debate. It was never aired unfortunately. </span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In the <a href="https://westyorkshire.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s24390/Appendix%201%20-%20West%20Yorkshire%20Climate%20and%20Environment%20Plan.pdf">Mayor's West Yorkshire Climate Action Plan</a> there's a lot of good stuff including the statement,</span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"We will use influence as a significant investor to start the process of developing
options for West Yorkshire Pension Fund divestment from fossil fuel companies <b>and
other environmentally damaging activities</b>".</i></span></span></span></p><p><span style="color: #444444; font-family: arial;"><span style="background-color: white;">The Plan then goes on to call for annual progress reports from WYPF. Given that Airport Expansion in an environmentally damaging activity will they include AMP Capital in their Annual Report? They should do.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial;">So now Labour have discovered after many years a renewed interest in divestment will they extend their divestment enthusiasm to AMP Capital? Well perhaps we shouldn't expect too much on that one.</span></p><p><em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; font-family: "Roboto Slab", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIZrARZO4EVg_R3ExV7z5sG-KiGVh2C7DC9vlF5fMFPdM2V0cUU_ddmrwVXHHZbYkWeaU8GyNLL4NhXFGg-ahYa40_TsRmj4DgKtLB7uGQ20P_IUYqztgQzAB2GmF8FTKoOKEKVrW8DvrK/s846/WYPF+AMP+CAPITAL+2020.JPG" style="clear: left; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="115" data-original-width="846" height="86" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIZrARZO4EVg_R3ExV7z5sG-KiGVh2C7DC9vlF5fMFPdM2V0cUU_ddmrwVXHHZbYkWeaU8GyNLL4NhXFGg-ahYa40_TsRmj4DgKtLB7uGQ20P_IUYqztgQzAB2GmF8FTKoOKEKVrW8DvrK/w640-h86/WYPF+AMP+CAPITAL+2020.JPG" width="640" /></a></em></p><p><em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; font-family: "Roboto Slab", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></em></p>Andrew Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16254689033137968918noreply@blogger.com0