Seven principal authority council by-elections this week and it's very much a story in two parts for the Liberal Democrats. On candidates, there were five Liberal Democrats for the seven seats - which may sound okay, but was down two on the last time these seats were contested. (A reminder about why standing more candidates in council elections matters here.)
Wiltshire Council is installing new walking and cycling facilities on Hilperton Road in Trowbridge in the new year to encourage people to leave their cars at home for shorter journeys A temporary cycling facility was previously installed on the road as a response to the pandemic. The temporary facility was previously criticised by Trowbridge Lib Dem councillor, Andrew Byant as unsafe. Concerns were raised over the safety of temporary cycle lanes put in place in response, so we are glad to see that Wiltshire Council have listened to our concerns and acted on them. The temporary facility will be removed and will be replaced with a more permanent solution for a larger section of the road, including widening of the footway to create a separate footway and cycle track for pedestrians and cyclists, plus signal-controlled toucan crossings. This will be achieved while still allowing ample room for two-way traffic to move freely along the road. The proposed 3 metre wide cycle track, which runs alongside the exis
Ahead of new Covid restrictions coming into effect, Liberal Democrats in Newcastle have backed their MPs' call for an emergency hospitality summit to save businesses on the brink.
Local MP Tim Farron has congratulated the Nursery class at the St Thomas's Primary School in Kendal for coming up with the winning design for his annual Christmas card.
Liberal Democrat Councillors to take motion to End Violence Against Women and Girls to Full Council in February.
Wiltshire Council has published a robust open letter in response to Bath & North East Somerset Council's (BANES) proposals to restrict heavy good vehicles (HGVs) using Cleveland Bridge in Bath, on the A36.
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!”
