To debate a Motion submitted by the Administration in accordance with Rules 11 and 13 of the Council’s Constitution. The debate will last for a maximum of 30 minutes.

 

7 –  Administration Motion regarding the Climate Emergency

 

Councillor Rachel Blake moved and Councillor Amina Ali seconded the motion as printed in the agenda.

 

Councillor  Andrew Wood  moved and Councillor Peter Golds   seconded the following amendment to the motion to be debated.

 

Added text underlined & in bold

Deleted text scored out.

 

This Council notes:

 

1.                  That the Mayor declared a climate emergency in Tower Hamlets in March 2019 , and Full Council supported that declaration through a resolution in July 2019;

2.                  That the impacts of the climate emergency are clear for everyone to see, from the devastating fires in Australia and California, to the recent widespread flooding in the UK;

3.                  40% of residents in Tower Hamlets live in areas that breach EU and government guidance on safe levels of air pollution;

4.                  Our ambition to become a zero-carbon council by 2025;

5.                  That Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has promised to deliver a green new deal for London with a target for the capital to be carbon-neutral by 2030

This Council further notes the ongoing work locally to tackle the emergency and improve air quality:

 

1.                  Since the Climate Emergency declaration last year we have produced a Net Zero Carbon Roadmap that has baselined the Council’s emissions and produced an action plan of projects with the aim of the council becoming net zero carbon by 2025;

2.                  That at the July 2019 Full Council meeting, members resolved that a Tower Hamlets Climate Emergency Annual Report should be produced every year, :

3.                  The council’s electricity supply has been switched to a 100% renewable tariff;

4.                  The street-light upgrade to LEDs has continued and is close to completion,

5.                 

6.                  We are also working with other London Boroughs through London Councils, the London Environment Coordinators Forum (LECF), Association of Local Energy Officers (ALEO) and London Boroughs Energy Group (LBEG) to see how Boroughs can work together on projects to address the Climate Emergency and working together to make representations to Government around what support we need to be able to tackle the climate emergency;

7.                  We are currently carrying out a study to identify suitable roof space for solar panels,

8.                The £15m Liveable Streets programme, which aims to make it easier, safer and more convenient to get around by foot, bike and public transport,

9.                  We are taking innovative action at a local level, for example London's first 'recycled' road was laid on Canrobert Street in Bethnal Green where approximately 100 recycled tyres were mixed into a new road surface;

10.            Tower Hamlets Council has been awarded £350,000 from the Mayor of London’s Local Enterprise Panel to help businesses tackle air pollution in the borough. The funding will enable the council to help small businesses reduce harmful emissions that contribute to poor air quality in Tower Hamlets;

11.              ;

12.            The launch of school and play streets;

13.           

14.             

15.            Our Air Quality Action Plan which outlines the action the council will take to improve air quality in Tower Hamlets;

16.            The council is on track to plant more than 2,200 trees this year, taking the total number of trees delivered in the past two years to more than 5,000. We have recently been awarded £320k from the Greater London Authority which will be used towards new highways tree pits;

17.             

18.             

19.             

20.             

21.             

22.              Our anti-idling campaign continues, with a minimum of one site visit/anti-idling action undertaken every week and LBTH remains part of the pan-London scheme;

23.              We are reviewing the waste fleet of vehicles,

24.             

25.             

26.             

27.           

28.           

29.              We are installing two electric vehicle charging points to facilitate zero emissions ice cream vans;

30.              ;

31.           

32.              We are working with partners and projects including Citizens UK, Sustrans, Low Emission Neighbourhoods, Zero Emission Neighbourhoods to help our communities reduce air pollution;

33.             

34.             

35.             

36.           

This Council believes:

 

1.                  That sustained and ambitious action is needed at a local, national and international level in order to tackle the climate emergency;

2.                  The climate emergency affect everybody but has a particular impact on those less able to adapt is also a social justice issue, with the worst affected by the crisis and poor air quality the lowest contributors to the changing climate;

3.                 

4.                  That the Conservative Government is not taking the emergency seriously enough, with the former President of the COP26 UN Climate talks condemning the Prime Minister’s inaction;

5.                  That the Government’s Brexit negotiating position threatens to severely weaken our own environmental protections and ambitions;

This Council resolves:

 

1.                  To call on the Government to recognise the seriousness of the climate emergency and take a more active role in tackling it;

2.                  To support the Mayor of London in his efforts to transform London into a carbon- neutral city and examine what Tower Hamlets Council can do to support that aim;

3.                  To introduce climate impact assessments;

4.                  To continue to deliver our Air Quality Action Plan;

5.                  To deliver the Net Zero Carbon Roadmap:

6.                 

7.                 

8.                 

9.                 

10.             

11.             

 

Following debate, the amendment was put to a vote and was defeated.

 

Following debate, the motion was put to a vote and was unanimously agreed.

 

RESOLVED:

 

This Council notes:

 

1.            That the Mayor declared a climate emergency in Tower Hamlets in March 2019, and Full Council supported that declaration through a resolution in July 2019;

2.            That the impacts of the climate emergency are clear for everyone to see, from the devastating fires in Australia and California, to the recent widespread flooding in the UK;

3.            40% of residents in Tower Hamlets live in areas that breach EU and government guidance on safe levels of air pollution;

4.            Our ambition to become a zero carbon council by 2025;

5.            That Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has promised to deliver a green new deal for London with a target for the capital to be carbon-neutral by 2030.

This Council further notesthe ongoing work locally to tackle the emergency and improve air quality:

 

1.            Since the Climate Emergency declaration last year we have produced a Net Zero Carbon Roadmap that has baselined the Council’s emissions and produced an action plan of projects with the aim of the council becoming net zero carbon by 2025;

2.            That at the July 2019 Full Council meeting, members resolved that a Tower Hamlets Climate Emergency Annual Report should be produced every year;

3.            The council’s electricity supply has been switched to a 100% renewable tariff;

4.            The street-light upgrade to LEDs has continued and is close to completion;

5.            We are also working with other London Boroughs through London Councils, the London Environment Coordinators Forum (LECF), Association of Local Energy Officers (ALEO) and London Boroughs Energy Group (LBEG) to see how Boroughs can work together on projects to address the Climate Emergency and working together to make representations to Government around what support we need to be able to tackle the climate emergency;

6.            We are currently carrying out a study to identify suitable roof space for solar panels;

7.            The £15m Liveable Streets programme, which aims to make it easier, safer and more convenient to get around by foot, bike and public transport;

8.            We are taking innovative action at a local level, for example London's first 'recycled' road was laid on Canrobert Street in Bethnal Green where approximately 100 recycled tyres were mixed into a new road surface;

9.            Tower Hamlets Council has been awarded £350,000 from the Mayor of London’s Local Enterprise Panel to help businesses tackle air pollution in the borough. The funding will enable the council to help small businesses reduce harmful emissions that contribute to poor air quality in Tower Hamlets;

10.         The launch of school and play streets;

11.         Our Air Quality Action Plan which outlines the action the council will take to improve air quality in Tower Hamlets;

12.         The council is on track to plant more than 2,200 trees this year, taking the total number of trees delivered in the past two years to more than 5,000. We have recently been awarded £320k from the Greater London Authority which will be used towards new highways tree pits;

13.         Our anti-idling campaign continues, with a minimum of one site visit/anti-idling action undertaken every week and LBTH remains part of the pan-London scheme;

14.         We are reviewing the waste fleet of vehicles;

15.         We are installing two electric vehicle charging points to facilitate zero emissions ice cream vans;

16.         We are working with partners and projects including Citizens UK, Sustrans, Low Emission Neighbourhoods, Zero Emission Neighbourhoods to help our communities reduce air pollution.

This Council believes:

 

1.            That sustained and ambitious action is needed at a local, national and international level in order to tackle the climate emergency;

2.            The climate emergency is also a social justice issue, with the worst affected by the crisis and poor air quality the lowest contributors to the changing climate;

3.            That the Conservative Government is not taking the emergency seriously enough, with the former President of the COP26 UN Climate talks condemning the Prime Minister’s inaction;

4.            That the Government’s Brexit negotiating position threatens to severely weaken our own environmental protections and ambitions;

This Council resolves:

 

1.            To call on the Government to recognise the seriousness of the climate emergency and take a more active role in tackling it;

2.            To support the Mayor of London in his efforts to transform London into a carbon-neutral city and examine what Tower Hamlets Council can do to support that aim;

3.            To introduce climate impact assessments;

4.            To continue to deliver our Air Quality Action Plan;

5.            To deliver the Net Zero Carbon Roadmap.