Bob popped along to Holyrood last week and seemed entirely unfazed by the political drama unfolding around him as MSPs went about the business of electing a new First Minister and confirming a host of ministerial appointments.
More than 500 children’s operations have been cancelled at hospitals in Somerset Foundation Trust in the past five years, many due to a shortage of staff and beds, shocking figures uncovered by the Liberal Democrats have revealed.
The Kingsbrook Liberal Democrat FOCUS Team has taken action to make Kingsbrook a cleaner, greener and safer ward for residents. Since being elected, Councillor Dean Crofts and the late Councillor Patrick Solomon have worked with Bedford Borough Council to install new streetlights, reduce speed limits to 20mph and plant hundreds of trees.
The Liberal Democrats have called for Parliament to be recalled over the junior doctors' strike and crisis facing the NHS.
Lib Dem Leader Ed Davey calls for recruitment drive of NHS 111 call handlers on visit to Surrey in South East, the region with worst delays
The £2 Bus fare scheme has been extended to June 2023. The scheme sees all adult single fares capped at £2 and all return fares capped at £4 on bus services operated by participating operators.
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!”
