Tonight, signals a new dawn for Burnley Council; a Climate Emergency has been declared.
Green Party Councillor Andy Fewings, who proposed the motion, said “Having Greens in the room changes the dynamic of the debate. I am proud to have brought this motion to the council chamber and am delighted that, even though there are just two of us, we are making the changes residents tell us they want.”
A working group of both residents of the borough, and councillors, will be established to help guide the council towards greener initiatives and make sure residents are involved in the process of bringing about changes in their area.
Historically, Burnley’s Labour councillors, have voted against Green motions but they’ve seemingly had a change of heart.
Green Party Councillor Andy Fewings said “This is not about paying lip service to protecting the environment. We need to see meaningful change in the council’s policies including supplementary planning guidance as lots of housing is not fit for purpose which is exacerbating fuel poverty. My motion is a sea change, and we are putting green issues, quite rightly, at the top of the agenda. I thank my fellow councillors for supporting me in doing that.”
A second Green motion to stop the council from using Glyphosate weedkiller was also put forward at the meeting. Disappointingly this was not debated as it was deemed to have material financial implications for the council.
Green Party Councillor Andy Fewings said “The council say our motion has financial implications but have not provided any facts, figures or evidence…in fact, they haven’t even spoken to me about it.”