Agenda item

The item was introduced by Steve Smith (Director, Commissioning Support Unit). He reminded members the draft strategy had been reviewed by Cabinet in October before an extensive period of public engagement. Partners from industry, academia and the public sector had also been consulted on and the findings from this had gone to the June Cabinet meeting. The newest draft was now being reviewed by all four of the Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committees before being finalised by November.

Responding to questions raised by Councillor Will Roberts in relation to carbon offsetting and the timelines for it, Steve Smith said an offsetting strategy was still in the process of being created and several different scenarios being analysed. An adaptations officer had been appointed to assist with this. A biodiversity and woodlands strategy was also being created, which would tie in with the work on green spaces. Steve Smith said there was an aim to plant a tree for every resident of Warwickshire; however, Councillor Will Roberts said mature trees would be able to provide a greater level of carbon offsetting compared to one that had been newly planted. Councillor Heather Timms said the offsetting plan was due to be implemented during 2023/24, and this would be done jointly with Coventry and Solihull Councils. She added it would be helpful if members were able to attend a meeting with the Council’s ecology experts to talk about how this strategy would be achieved.

Members noted an additional £3.29million had been awarded to the Council from the government towards electric vehicle charging points, and said this was welcomed. Councillor Rob Tromans said he had had conversations with representatives from the National Grid, who had expressed frustration that new local developments often lacked the infrastructure to provide charging points, and in some cases they could not be installed at neighbouring properties. He asked if the planning authorities at borough and district level were able to ask for a Section 106 agreement relating to improved infrastructure to provide additional charging points, as often the building contractors would not put them in as a matter of course. Steve Smith said discussions were taking place with the National Grid, who had been one of the consultees during the earlier engagement exercise. It was accepted that the number of charging points was not equal across the county. Councillor Sarah Feeney said in Oxfordshire some charging points had been installed directly into the ground, removing the need for unsightly charging boxes. Councillor Heather Timms said the transport team were prioritising how charging points might be installed in older areas of terraced houses which were not designed with cars in mind. Steve Smith said the transport team were also developing their own decarbonisation plan.

Responding to a point raised by Councillor Sarah Feeney regarding care workers, Steve Smith said the Council wanted to engage with care providers that contributed to the Council’s overall net zero carbon targets. However the Council had to be mindful of not enforcing new policies onto care providers that were not affordable. Councillor Sarah Feeney made the point care workers were low paid and were unlikely to be able to afford an electric car, which would help offset carbon emissions as they would also travel a lot for work. Councillor Sarah Feeney said thought needed to be given to behavioural change more generally and how this would assist with the Council’s carbon emission and offsetting targets. Steve Smith said Warwick University had been conducting work on behavioural change, and the Council was taking this into consideration while also having regard for affordability. It was accepted some changes may be harder to implement in more rural areas of the county.

Councillor Sarah Boad said improved and more efficient public transport would help to meet net zero targets. She said buses in Warwickshire were often infrequent and in some cases did not turn up at all, meaning would-be passengers had to wait up to two hours. Councillor Sarah Boad stated her belief there ought to be lobbying of central government requiring statutory guidance on installation of solar panels on new build estates.

Responding to a question from Councillor Tim Sinclair, Steve Smith said the Council was taking into account examples of best practice from elsewhere in considering the development of the strategy.

The Chair said he welcomed the report and the work that had been done on the strategy so far. He said he would like to receive an update at a future meeting on the progress that was being made and asked for an item to be added to the work programme.

Members noted the contents of the report and draft strategy.