Green credentials of Cherwell budget slammed by opposition

During the debate on the soundness of the budget, Cherwell’s Green councillor, Ian Middleton, argued that claims that this was a budget with a “Green focus” were highly exaggerated.

Whilst the council was promoting a headline figure of £250,000 specifically to respond to the climate change emergency, this amount was to be spread over five years giving an annual spend of just £50,000 per year.

This represents just 0.2 per cent of the annual services budget and a little less than 0.01 per cent of the capital budget.

Cllr Middleton said: “ If the council claims this is a budget with a ‘green focus’ I suggest they have an urgent sight test. In terms of the environment this is a very unfocused budget and seeks to box-tick measures that are only tangentially related to climate change as being specifically for that purpose.

"For it to be described as a green budget I would expect to see at least five to 10 per cent being spent on climate change mitigation measures.

“Whilst I acknowledge that, on an operational level, the council is addressing some environmental issues, until we take account of the full impact of all policies across the district they will never be able to claim to be genuinely focused on mitigating climate collapse.

“Cherwell is a council hooked on growth for its own sake, and at the forefront of this addiction is its plans to decimate large areas of green belt in the pursuit of government funding and in support of the ambitions of the university to grow its presence in south Cherwell.

“This is not a sustainable way for local government to be funded, neither is the idea that councils should be forced to become commercial operations, setting themselves up as corporate entities to plug gaps in funding created by the government’s continuing austerity measures.”

Other measures being claimed as dealing with climate change by the council include the switch over to LED lighting in key areas, some woodland projects, some new recycling bins and a ‘delivery project’ for works on the Oxford Canal.

Many of these projects are also cost-saving measures and municipal projects that were already in the pipeline, but even allowing for these to be described as a response to climate change, they only amount to some £528,000 in the coming year or just below 1 per cent of the total capital budget.

The meeting was also attended by campaigners from North Oxford Golf Club who pleaded with the council to protect their 103 year old club grounds from proposed development. This would include the destruction of a large number of trees.

Cllr Middleton said: "Yet again we see Cherwell’s Conservatives talking the talk on climate change, but when it comes to positive action they default to business as usual.

“It makes no sense to anyone other than Cherwell’s Tories to propose a measure to increase tree numbers in the district in one motion and then vote in the very same meeting to destroy hundreds of mature trees in the face of massive opposition from local residents and environmental campaigners.”

He added "I went into the budget debate with an open mind and, having listened to all the arguments, I concluded that I could not support a budget that did not have the environment at its heart. We have declared a climate emergency, and we need to be seen to be putting our money where our mouths are.”

Councillor Sean Woodcock, leader of the Labour group, also condemned the budget's green credentials, saying: "The idea that this is a ‘Green Investment Budget’ is simply bogus. What they are committing to tackle environmental issues is frankly chicken feed.

"In Oxford, we have an authority that has committed £19m this year to tackling climate change. This is on top of £83m that they have already committed. And what they are doing in comparison to this authority is striking.

"Here, we have no commitment to generating more renewable energy. Here, we have no commitment to divesting from fossil fuels. Here, we have no commitment to switching to green energy across the council estate. Here, we have no commitment to licensing of greener taxis.

"And they’re doing nothing to tackle air quality issues in places like Hennef Way, Banbury; Bicester Road, Kidlington; or Kings End in Bicester.

"All we have them is changing a few light bulbs in council car parks. And a few extra bottle banks; which housing growth in the district means are required anyway.

He added: "The reality is that this ‘Green Investment Budget’ is a fig leaf used by this administration to hide their own naked incompetence."