20s Plenty for Us
Why reduce speeds in our residential streets?There are a whole host of reasons but in climate emergency terms it is to e...
4 Feb 2020
Wera Hobhouse MP urges government to incentivise solar power
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10 years ago, I had the honour of sitting beside Paddy Ashdown during a dinner function. When I asked him what liberal democracy was, he answered in 3 words 'Liberty, Fairness, Tolerance'. In the weeks leading to this evening, I asked several people - is Liberal Democracy as understood and practised today fit to meet the challenges of the 21st Century?
DYPCCLD
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Johnson plan is no deal in all but name
Ed Davey responded to Boris Johnson's speech outlining his position on trade negotiations with the EU, the Liberal Democrat Acting Leader said: "Paying lip-service to free trade after taking us out of the largest free trade zone in the world is nothing short of hypocrisy. "All it shows is that Johnson is happy to jeopardise our trade with the EU for political gain. Refusing to practically commit to a level playing field is simply not a serious negotiating strategy. "Boris is gearing up for no-deal masqueraded as an Australian-style agreement, that will hollow out our trade. The Liberal Democrats will continue to oppose his dangerous plans and fight to maintain our most important trading relationship."
3 Feb 2020
So we now know: jobs and the UK economy will come second
Johnson government sends EU a message before trade talks begin: stating that Brexit means sovereignty and trumps the economy.
3 Feb 2020
Strong Second Place for Lib Dems in Lambeth
Lambeth Liberal Democrats
3 Feb 2020
Devon County Council Elections 2021: Could you be a candidate?
We are now looking ahead to next year's county council elections and are keen to get candidates in place so we can start to campaign. We already have one county councillor, that's Julian Brazil for Kingsbridge - we really want more. Devon County Council are responsible for delivering a large range of vital local services, such as roads and transport, education, libraries and social services, making being a county councillor a really important role; they can make a real difference to their communities. County councillors are not paid for their work but they do receive substantial allowances.
3 Feb 2020
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!”
