Ex-leader frustrated as Green-Labour strategy removes Warwick District Council's target date on net zero

The Conservative former leader of Warwick District Council described himself as “really disappointed” that the Green-Labour group now in charge has “dropped” net zero deadlines.

Councillor Andrew Day (Con, Bishop’s Tachbrook), who was in the hot seat until May when the local elections brought about a change of power, expressed frustration over the removal of dates from the ambition for the authority to become carbon neutral.

His address came during this week’s meeting of the overview and scrutiny committee, a panel of councillors tasked with providing feedback on major areas of the council’s work and policies.

One area currently under the microscope is the new corporate strategy, a document that sets out the council’s aims and ambitions for the next seven years.

In November 2021, the Conservative-led cabinet agreed a joint Climate Change Action Programme alongside Stratford-on-Avon District Council, laying out how the council’s work should be carbon neutral by 2025, a standard that should encompass all of its contractors by 2030.

It was to be achieved by decarbonising buildings, council travel and contracts but central government backing for some of the projects, such as retrofitting buildings to save on energy, is not there to see it through.

The vision within the current draft of the Green-Labour corporate strategy, which is due to be consulted on and put in place by mid-November, reads: “To make Warwick District a great place to live, work and visit and be carbon neutral.”

It is the same as what is in the current version – the Business Strategy 2020-23 – but it misses “by 2030” off the end.

Cllr Day said: “I am somewhat disappointed to see that the goal around getting this council to operate on a carbon neutral basis by 2025 isn’t here.

“What has happened to that? Are we doing a Rishi U-turn?”

Deputy leader Councillor Chris King (Lab, Leamington Clarendon) accepted that meeting those dates appeared unlikely and the omission was about managing expectations without prompting an abandonment of hope through perceived failure.

“There is an issue over how to play this,” he said.

“Realistically, achieving what we want to by 2025 is hugely difficult, some would say more than hugely difficult.

How do we voice what we want to do and not reduce any energies around actually achieving that? It is extraordinarily difficult.

“It is mainly because there is no extra resource coming our way to achieve that, so no, we are not doing a Rishi Sunak – of course I would say that, but we aren’t – and the point really is that it would be pointless to say we are going to do this by 2025 when actually, it is going to be extremely difficult.

“I want to reassure everybody that our goal is to do that and the meaning of that is that we will push as hard as we can. That is a really serious undertaking, I don't want anyone to doubt that.”

Cllr Day queried: “Why not reset the goal rather than just drop it?”

He went on to say the council should take the lead to encourage other public bodies “to tackle this incredibly difficult challenge”, insisting the district must “be brave about it” to inspire focus.

“I don’t wish to be lecturing Green councillors on net zero carbon policy, as odd as that might be coming from a Conservative ex-leader, but I am really disappointed it has been dropped," he added.

Cllr King replied: “I do hear what you are saying.

“You mentioned Rishi Sunak yourself. What central government is saying is actually pulling back from specific things, saying they are not going to do them. We are not saying that.

“I hear your point and I think it is a very valid one. I will take that back to my colleagues and we will see what we can do to take that as seriously as we can in the context of where we are this year, at this point and with our resources.

"I think that is as fair as I can say right now.”