The Cabinet member responsible for climate change at Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has challenged the government to take greater action in line with the local commitment to make the area carbon neutral by 2030.

The call comes in advance of the fourth anniversary of the council’s climate emergency declaration on Sunday (10 September).

Unanimously backed by borough councillors, the declaration was made on 10 September 2019 and included setting ambitious targets for a carbon neutral council by December 2025 and a net zero carbon borough by December 2030.

Cabinet Member for the Climate and Ecological Emergency Cllr Chris Tomblin said: “With emissions equal to over one million tonnes of carbon left to cut and only seven years to do it in, more needs to be done to reach borough-wide carbon neutrality by 2030.

“As local councillors, we declared the emergency and set these ambitious targets because we recognised the threat posed locally and nationally by climate change and that immediate action was needed to combat it.

“This council takes its role seriously. We are making progress to meet our commitment to become carbon neutral and we are helping residents and businesses cut their emissions too, including with face-to-face support from our new carbon-busting green team.

“But we know we cannot do this alone. That’s why, as we approach the fourth anniversary of our declaration, I’m calling on the government to do more to match our climate ambitions.

“Despite having a net zero target 20 years later than ours, the government has greater power and influence than us as a district council to make much-needed changes and decisions that could have a significant positive impact on emissions.

“This includes making long-awaited updates to national policies that we must follow, such as those for planning and recycling. They must also do more to help people to make climate-positive changes including more grants to help people make their homes more energy efficient to save money and cut their carbon footprints.

“The government must take more of the vital decisions that only they can take, and we want to cooperate more closely with them as they do that so we can go further faster and work together better to tackle the climate emergency.

“From residents through to groups, councils, the government and businesses, we all have a responsibility and a part to play to fight climate change. All of us can and must do more and we want to hear everyone’s ideas about how that can happen.”

To underline its commitment to achieving its carbon targets, the council is applying to join other local authorities as part of climate network UK:100, whose members pledge to accelerate local climate action to make their areas net zero carbon ahead of the government’s 2050 target.

For more information about the council’s work to tackle climate change, see www.basingstoke.gov.uk/climate.