Climate emergency declaration rescinded by Reform-run North Northamptonshire Council
A climate emergency declaration made by North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) in 2021 has been rescinded in a move orchestrated by Reform councillors last night (Thursday).
Despite protests outside and arguments against the move inside the Corby Cube, the motion to rescind was voted through.
North Northamptonshire’s net zero target has already been pushed from 2030 to align with a new national target of 2050.
After the driest spring and summer in Northamptonshire since records began more than150 years ago, the protest, led by the Green Party, saw placards and banners stating ‘The climate doesn’t read council motions’.
Speaking against the motion Green Party leader, Emily Fedorowycz said: “I want to focus today on one thing the motion overlooks, which is the public.
“What does this do for local people? That’s who we are here to represent.”
An official government national survey this year found that 78 per cent of people are worried about climate change.
Cllr Fedorowycz added: “You are alienating three quarters of the population.”
The protesters gathered outside the entrance, ensuring councillors would have to pass them by as they held up signs and grouped together.
They attempted to grab the attention of councillors heading into the meeting but one of the protesters, auditor investigator Adrian Watts, felt the demonstration was not being taken seriously: “Two reform councillors laughed at us as they walked by.
“This is a real thing, and it doesn’t feel like Reform believe in it.”
Public speakers were present and voiced their views on the motion including 11-year-old schoolgirl Stevie Clements who was roundly applauded.
She said: “The world is going green. If North Northamptonshire stops prioritising sustainability our area will fall behind.
“If you delay action just to make things easier right now, you are simply handing us bigger, more dangerous and far more expensive problems later.”
Cllr Leon Gibbs (Reform/Barton Seagrave and Burton Latimer) and Cllr Lee Duffy (Reform/Lloyds and Corby Village) had proposed the motion to end NNC’s climate emergency declaration.
Cllr Gibbs defended Reform’s record, saying they have delivered £4.38m in decarbonisation projects including at Corby swimming pool, the Corby Cube and Desborough leisure centre.
He said: “Responsible councils revisit language that no longer describes the work they are doing.”
Comparing the net zero target of 2050 to his proposal, Cllr Gibbs added: “An emergency is urgent, immediate and exceptional – 24 years are none of these things.”
Speaking against the motion, Kettering resident Anne Lee said: “True British conservation means preserving North Northamptonshire’s countryside, soil and waterways – not adding more layers of council bureaucracy or abandoning targets altogether.”
One of the speakers, retired science teacher Russell Attwood, noted how ‘the declaration can be rescinded’ but ‘you can’t rescind the physics’.
Reform’s Cllr Chris Munday weighed into the debate, arguing ‘net zero had developed a lot in common with religion’ and poked fun at the image of climate protesters.
He said: “Karl Marx described religion as the opium for the people. I sometimes wonder if net zero has become the opium of hemp-sandal-wearing, tofu-poke-bowl-eating, top-knot-sporting, plaited-armpit, satirical caricature environmentalists many are familiar with.”
The motion saw a vote of 37 in favour, 16 against and four abstentions.
NNC will now follow Environmental Consideration Assessments in place of the previous Climate Change Impact Assessment process to focus on environmental impacts without imposing ‘unnecessary administrative requirements’.
Reacting to the vote, MP for Kettering Rosie Wrighting said she was ‘very disappointed to see Reform have rescinded the council’s climate emergency declaration’.
She said: “We are clearly at a place where national and local governments need to do everything they can to promote climate policies and prevent us moving closer towards a climate crisis.
“While Reform continue to play politics with this issue I am pleased that the Government is investing in clean, home-grown energy to bring down bills and create good jobs. Kettering residents deserve a council that takes this seriously.”