Over 16,880 "squeezed middle" families in Guildford won't receive any help with soaring energy bills, analysis by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.
Lib Dem Councillors on the Surrey Police and Crime Panel have criticised the Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for raising Council Tax and drawing on reserves to expand their own office's budget by 17% to £3.3 million a year, while Surrey Police will have to make do with 50 fewer frontline staff than they need to address performance issues.
The Guardian highlights research that shows new greenfield housing developments are locking residents into car dependency, making everyday journeys impossible without a vehicle. Meanwhile, pledges for walking, cycling and public transport are often left unfulfilled.
It has been found that the apartments above Waitrose in Guildford Town Centre have major problems with the construction of the external walls resulting in significant fire risk. This is causing major concerns in the wake of the Grenfell disaster and leaves the residents feeling uncertain about what the future holds for them in terms of both safety and finances.
In the latest Budget announcement, it was revealed that the Council's external debt has continued to fall over the past year from £69 million to £65.7 million. This is another huge reduction from the £90.7 million of debt that the administration inherited when the Council became a unitary authority in April 2009, just before Mayor Dave Hodgson was first elected. Mayor Dave said "When I was first elected it was so frustrating to find that we had a huge amount of money tied up in interest payments and debt repayments. We have been managing our debt level by making savings wherever we can whilst still maintaining quality services and limiting borrowing. Less debt means we have more funding for projects that matter to residents, such as tackling climate change, investing in our town centres and protecting green spaces. This is fantastic progress in very difficult circumstances."
Over 10,000 households - 24% of Woking - will not receive any help with soaring energy bills, analysis by the Lib Dems has revealed.
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!”
