Time for a change Councillor Tim Styles is the Liberal Democrat candidate for the constituency of St Austell and Newquay which, since its creation in 2010, has alternated between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. Currently Conservative... so, time for a change!
"If we vote to leave then I think the union will be stronger" - Michael Gove.
5 DAYS TO POLLING DAY & A BRIGHTER FUTURE "Green Hero - Jules Ewart" Jules Ewart, Lib Dem candidate for Suffolk Coastal receives her 'Green Accreditation', Keith Melton and Laura Sykes interviewed Suffolk Coastal candidate Jules for the Green Lib Dems website as part of their 'Green Hero' series, featuring some of the LibDem's Greenest candidates. Jules has just received her 'Green Accreditation', which is an endorsement as a Liberal Democrat who visibly supports 'Green' values and policies. In the article Jules says:
The Liberal Democrats have accused the Conservatives of failing to protect local small businesses, after figures revealed that 1,235 businesses in the area have closed over the last three years.
The Liberal Democrats have accused the Conservatives of failing to protect local small businesses, after figures revealed that 1,690 businesses in the area have closed over the last three years.
"Our penny on income tax ringfenced for the NHS is going down well on the doorstep" says Mike Hibbs, our Lib Dem candidate in the Saffron Walden Constituency. "Voters understand the urgency and appreciate the clarity of how our promise will be funded." The Liberal Democrats are the only party with a long-term plan for health and social care. To tackle the immediate problem we will raise an additional £7 billion a year, ringfenced to be spent only on the NHS and Social Care services. This revenue will be generated from a 1p rise in the basic, higher and additional rates of income tax. Full details of the proposals in our Manifesto. Go to www.libdems.org.uk/plan, scroll down and click on Our Plan for Health and Social Care.
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!”
