Climate Emergency on Council Agenda

Sheffield City Council have published the agenda for its meeting at 2pm on 7th February, the 5th Anniversary of the declaration of the Climate Emergency. The meeting will begin with petitions and questions from the public. If you would like to ask a question concerning the Council’s response to the Emergency, please get in touch with me. They have to be submitted two full days before the meeting.

Sheffield Green Party have submitted the following motion. Councillors tell me it is unlikely to get debated, as there are three big motions ahead of it on the agenda. But Councillors will have to vote on it. Behind the scenes, some Councillors will currently be proposing amendments to this, probably to water it down.

Here is the motion.

Notice of Motion Regarding “Five Years Since Declaring A Climate Emergency” – Given by Councillor Paul Turpin and to be Seconded by Councillor Alexi Dimond

That:-

This Council notes:-

(a)      Sheffield City Council (SCC) has declared a Climate Emergency and has an ambition to become a zero-carbon city by 2030;

(b)      in 2019, The Tyndall Centre produced a report stating that Sheffield City Council must reduce its carbon emissions by 14% each year to achieve zero carbon by 2030;

(c)      the latest 2022 CO2e emissions data indicates that Sheffield City Council has reduced emissions by 3% since 2019, and needs to reduce emissions by a further 77% by 2030 to be in line with the Sheffield-wide 80% reduction on 2019 emissions that the Pathways to Decarbonisation Report suggested could be achievable by 2030;

This Council believes:-

(d)      Green involvement in the Council Administration has been central to the climate action the Council has taken: from introducing Climate Impact Assessments, to the creation of the Ten Point Plan for Climate Action, to ensuring major schemes like Connecting Sheffield and the Clean Air Zone progress in the face of political opposition;

(e)      that unrelenting action to tackle the climate emergency is the only way to achieve zero carbon by 2030, and the Council should be working at all Policy Committees on urgently reducing emissions;

This Council resolves to:-

(f)       ask the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee to consider adding to its work programme, implementation of a workplace parking levy to leverage funding for active and public transport at comparable levels to Nottingham City Council, who raised around £680 million over 10 years;

(g)      request the Strategy and Resources Policy Committee to consider adding to its work programme, development of an advertising policy which does not support high carbon industries and products harmful to people and nature, such as promoted by Adfree Cities;

(h)      request the Economic Development and Skills Policy Committee to consider adding to its work programme, the completion of the Green Jobs and Skills Strategy initiated by Greens during the Cooperative Executive;

(i)       call on the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority to make more funding available for Green Skills;

(j)       remind all Policy Committees to ensure the Climate Impact Assessment is used to develop all SCC decisions and actions;

(k)      ask the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee to consider adding to its work programme, an update on progress against the Renewable Energy strategy proposed by Greens in November 2022’s full Council meeting;

(l)       ask the Strategy and Resources Policy Committee to consider adding to its work programme as a matter of urgency,  investigation of the practicalities of issuing Green Bonds to raise extra funding to support climate action;

(m)     ensure that all Councillors undertake Climate Literacy training, and to ask the Member Development Working Group to oversee the delivery of that training; and

(n)      ask the Strategy and Resources Policy Committee to consider adding to its work programme, requiring all Policy Committees to set targets and prove they are reducing emissions across the portfolio, including publication of any increases.

Please get in touch with your Councillor and ask them to support this motion.