Responding to Nadhim Zahawi being sacked for breaking the ministerial code, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper said:
Our Prime Minister promised integrity, professionalism, and accountability. So far, we have had the Prime Minister being fined for not wearing his seat belt and Nadim Zahawi, the Conservative party chair appears to have been fined millions of pounds for being careless with his tax returns when Chancellor. Meanwhile the chair of the BBC, a well-known Tory donor, was in the position of being identified as a fixer for yet another loan for the ever skint Boris Johnson when PM.
Reports in the Observer talk about a dire situation in a Home Office run Brighton & Hove Hotel for child asylum seekers. An attempted abduction of three of the children was foiled by police who had been alerted by a member of the public who warned them something suspicious was going on. The article also mentions that up to 76 children have gone missing from the hotel and that dozens have been kidnapped by gangs. The article goes on to claim that there have been allegations of threatened violence and intimidation against the children over misbehaviour. A Brighton & Hove Liberal Democrat spokesperson said questions need to be asked about what the local authorities know about the hotel and what their powers are to regulate the goings on there. This is a stain on the reputation of the city and needs to be investigated by the relevant local powers.
Progress on 20mph limits for Haslemere, as championed by volunteers at Haslemere Active Travel and Lower Street residents, is being made after Lib Dem Cllr Terry Weldon's motion was backed at the Town Council.
Scottish Liberal Democrat education spokesperson Willie Rennie has today challenged the Scottish Government to secure more accommodation for the year ahead as he revealed new figures showing that in each of the last two years, more than 10,000 students were unable to secure university accommodation.
Scottish Liberal Democrat communities spokesperson Willie Rennie has today highlighted the “calamitous mismatch” which means that Scotland now has as many empty properties as it does people without permanent accommodation.
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!”
