'Cumbria Day', an event hosted jointly in Parliament by the county's six MPs, has once again been a great success. Businesses from across Cumbria travelled to Parliament to showcase the fine food and drink produce that the county has to offer.
Morrisons have been in touch with Liberal Democrat Councillor Roger Harmer with the following message:
Lord Paddy Ashdown, Liberal Democrat leader and Patron of CLDs, had a two-day fact-finding mission to Hong Kong (27 Nov 2017 - 28 Nov 2017).
We had a highly enjoyable informal LibDem pint at the Bowd Inn in Sidmouth on January 24th, with a mix of old and new members. As usual when 2 or more Libdems meet, lively political discussion ensued! We will be holding these monthly- the next one will be on Tuesday 27th February. Details will go out in the next members' newsletter, due out shortly, and will be available in the members' area of the website (you will have to log in to access it). See you there!
Bedfordshire NHS Clinical Commissioning today announced a six month reprieve for the Putnoe Walk In Centre, announcing an extension to its contract from 31st March to 30th September, 'while a new Urgent Treatment Centre is set up in Bedford.'
Revised 2018 entry arrangements for schools in Newcastle have just been published at https://www.newcastle.gov.uk/education-and-learning/admissions-and-school-transfers
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath and spokesperson for Energy Security and Net Zero, called on the government to provide incentives for energy providers to develop solar power in the UK.
Mrs Hobhouse slammed the government for falling behind on meeting the UK’s renewable targets for solar energy capacity. The government plans to deploy 70 GW of solar power across the country by 2035. However, as of 2022, the UK had only installed 14.3 GW of solar pv.
Following a visit to a rooftop solar system installed by Bath & West Community Energy (BWCE) at Beechen Cliff School last year, Wera Hobhouse is keen to encourage the development of similar solar projects across Bath. The solar system is predicted to significantly cut the school’s fuel costs and reduce their carbon emissions by 52 tonnes a year.
In the House of Commons on the 27th February, the Bath MP noted that the UK is lagging behind the rest of the world in renewable energy investment, she urged the government to offer incentives to energy providers to improve solar capacity.
However, Andrew Bowie, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Energy Security and Net Zero, ignored Hobhouse’s proposals, failing to describe the ways in which the government could incentivise solar energy. Instead, Bowie said that the government’s Solar Taskforce would publish recommendations for solar power and reiterated the government’s target to deploy 70 GW by 2035.
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath and spokesperson for Energy Security and Net Zero, commented:
“The Conservatives are falling dangerously behind on meeting our targets for renewable energy production. It is no good the government setting an ambitious 70 GW solar target if they are nowhere near reaching it.
“It is clear that they have no plan to get us back on track to reach Net Zero. Evidently, they are more than happy to dismiss perfectly good proposals like incentivising solar power. That is why I am so proud that Bath is home to many community energy projects like the solar system at Beechen Cliff School, so that we can lead the way in renewables.”
“It is not just our climate targets harmed by the Conservatives’ delay. Families in Bath and across the country are struggling to pay soaring energy bills which investment in renewables could curb. That is why we Liberal Democrats would build significantly more renewable energy, aiming to generate 80% of our electricity from renewables by 2030.”
Peter Capener, Managing Director of Bath & West Community Energy said:
“Our work with schools is really demonstrating the value of community energy in both addressing the climate crisis and reducing fuel bills. Rooftop solar installed last year has already saved local schools a combined total of £134,209 and has reduced carbon emissions by 224.3 tonnes, which is equivalent to 12,173 journeys from Bath to Edinburgh by train!”
