12 November 2020
There have been worrying signs of backtracking on local Climate & Ecological Emergency action since the Conservatives took control of BCP Council on 1st October.
They deleted the words "Climate Change" from the list of Cabinet job titles. And their new portfolio holder for "Sustainability" quickly said that BCP should oppose any revival of Poole Bay windfarm plans, in comments that East Dorset Friends of the Earth called "factually incorrect" and showing "outdated understanding".
Climate & Ecological Emergency councillor working group meetings have been suspended since the change of power, with no confirmation they will resume. There has also been no official announcement yet about the future of the Unity Alliance's plan to use citizens' assemblies to develop action plans, or their rolling programme of public consultation.
Public pressure is needed now, to show the Cabinet the strength of public support for serious climate action, and the political cost to them if they turn away from it.
Local members of the public are entitled to submit questions to any full BCP Council meeting, for the Cabinet to answer. The first meeting under Conservative rule is on 24th November.
BCP Green Party's Climate & Ecological Emergency Steering Group has identified three key questions at this stage, which we are calling on concerned citizens to submit to BCP's Cabinet:
1) Will you honour the Unity Alliance plan to put ordinary citizens at the heart of Climate & Ecological Emergency action planning, through citizens' assemblies and ongoing public consultation?
2) Will you reinstate the words "Climate Change" to a Cabinet post title?
3) Will you continue the Climate & Ecological Emergency councillor working groups?
Questions can be emailed to democratic.services@bcpcouncil.gov.uk. You need to include your home or work address in BCP, and the maximum length of a question submission is 100 words. The question submission deadline for this meeting is Tuesday 17th November.
