ALTER: enemy of national housing targets?
Is ALTER on the side of Generation Rent - the under-40s finding it harder every year to get a foot on the housing ladder? Of course we are.
TV
25 Aug 2022
Wera Hobhouse MP urges government to incentivise solar power
29 Feb 2024
Edinburgh
Edinburgh must lead on pavement parking ban
Edinburgh must aim to be one of the first councils to fully implement the new ban on pavement parking, Liberal Democrats have said.
25 Aug 2022
GCSE exam results 2022
Wiltshire Council has praised GCSE students for their determination and hard work as they collect their GCSE results today (25 August).
WC
25 Aug 2022
A Tribute to Alan Cotter.
Often when out campaigning, the conversation turns to the corruption and untrustworthiness of politicians. The story runs that they are all in it for themselves and take the voters for granted. How often do we all hear this? There are public servants which show that this is just not true. Not long ago, we lost Barbara Long (former Andover Town Council Mayor) who was a strong voice for the town. More recently Alan Cotter (former Andover Town Councillor and Labour leader) passed away. Despite being a political opponent, he was another great servant of Andover and the Constituency of North West Hampshire. Alan was a calm and unassuming man with a ready smile who always saw the best in people. Although a quiet man, he always spoke with authority and often forged consensus where there was none.
LG
25 Aug 2022
Bin Energy Cap
The country is in crisis. Inflation fuelling strikes, the reluctance of government to pay people a fair wage, the lack of action to combat climate change, and I am sure you can name more. Following a classical parody of which our absent holidaying prime minister is so fond, Boris is fiddling while Britain burns. Meanwhile the would-be successors continue to make impossible promises, and confirm they are not fit to hold the highest elected office. The opposition remain invisible, they are correct in painting the government as zombies, yet themselves offer little in the way of solutions.
LGLDPSNWH
25 Aug 2022
West Berkshire
New data reveals no dental practices in West Berkshire are accepting new NHS patients
In a shocking investigation of dentistry services across the UK, new analysis by the BBC has found that 100% of dentistry practices in West Berkshire are not accepting any new NHS patients.
25 Aug 2022
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!”
