One Big Question: Candidates speak out on climate emergency

The Gazette asked all eight main parties at this spring's 'all out' elections what they would do to ensure the borough meets its ambitious environmental targets.

It is part of this newspaper's 'One Big Question' feature, which will see the parties answer a variety of hot topics between now and polling day on May 6.

We asked the main parties: "The climate crisis is one of the most important issues in a generation. In 2019, the council declared a climate emergency and has set bold targets of becoming carbon neutral by 2025, and the borough following suit by 2030. How does your party intend to address the issues posed by the climate crisis to ensure that the borough meets its targets?"

This is what all eight parties had to say, in full.

READ ALSO: Candidates set out climate crisis priorities

Hampshire Independents - Alan Stone

By supporting Hampshire Independents “Buy Local” policies we can reduce the carbon footprint of our local services and goods requirements. Buying lo-cally keeps transport emissions down.

Schools can help, teach children about the positives of eating seasonal produce and the benefits that can achieve. Climate change is happening and it is how we adapt that matters as much as teaching what we have already done wrong.

One of the biggest environmental polluters is the clothing industry. We must stop buying clothing and other goods from countries that ignore the damage they are doing to the environment. Just because the pollution is not happening here, and the retailers donate to charity, it does not make it right. Britain's impact on world carbon immersions is very small, but its influence on global commerce is immense. We need to flex our retail muscle and buy locally produced goods.

Basingstoke and Deane Independents - Paul Harvey

Climate change is real and unless the Council delivers on its target of being carbon neutral by 2025 and the Borough by 2030 then we risk our children’s future, we're fast approaching the point of no return.   

• The Council should directly invest in renewable energy, solar power on Council owned buildings;   
• The Borough to build homes on its land, especially Manydown, that meet the highest environmental standards and stop developers passing the buck. We oppose them offsetting their carbon emissions or nitrates;  
• We want vastly improved public transport run using ‘green’ buses;  
• Create Urban and Rural Biodiversity Parks – designating land to be protected from developers; 
• Grants for people to regenerate their homes with better insulation, solar power, and water saving technology;
• Radically improve what’s recycled in Basingstoke & Deane.  

We're the custodians of our biodiversity and environment – Climate Change has to be a priority in every decision the Council makes.

Green Party - Stephen Philpotts

The climate crisis IS the most important issue in a generation, in any generation. The Green Party welcomed the Council’s declaration of a climate emergency with its tight time targets. The sooner we act effectively – the less difficult it will be for us all to adjust to inevitable change. There is an unavoidable need for us all to act and change at a local level. We believe that, in addition to the electrification of vehicles, there is now an urgent need for a major switch from personal to mass public transportation, for example in getting people into Basingstoke from the south-west. The Council should stipulate that all new buildings in the borough should be designed to be fully energy-efficient, ideally with zero or low-carbon heating. They should also demand that businesses retrofit their premises and individuals be granted financial provision to retrofit their homes.

Conservatives - Simon Bound 

Tackling climate change is a key focus and affects all our decision making.   

We have worked with all parties to adopted a Climate Change & Air Quality Strategy at the council.  We will lead, enable and inspire partners and residents to reduce carbon emissions. 

We are committed to putting policies into the planning process for sustainable homes and will work with housing partners to transform existing homes which are responsible for a quarter of carbon emissions. 

We will continue to find and promote sustainable initiatives such as Solar Together Hampshire and have allocated £2 million towards dealing with the climate emergency.  

We are focussed on supporting transport which is greener and continue to work with the county council to put more electric charging points in residential areas.   

The natural environment will continue to play a significant role, for example, protecting important landscapes, a country park at Manydown and more biodiversity zones.

Women's Equality Party - Priya Brown

Climate change is a huge issue for the Women’s Equality Party; no climate responses are gender-neutral and they have important implications for equality. I will push to implement WE Basingstoke’s feminist-led climate action plan, which you can read on www.linktr.ee/wepbasingstoke, which provides a far more effective way of dealing with the climate emergency than a rush to focus on tech and construction. The council should invest in low-carbon, high-recompense sectors we already have and desperately need more of: care and education. Research by the independent Women’s Budget Group finds that a 2% GDP investment in social care, childcare, and parental leave creates double the jobs for women and almost as many for men than the same investment in construction. Eurostat data suggests that the care industry is 30% and the education industry 62% less polluting than the construction industry. Care and education jobs are ‘green’ jobs and provide win-win solutions!

Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition - Mayola Demmenie

The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition has these national environmental policies which we as candidates can independently add to:

• Deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions - otherwise climate change, caused by capitalism, will destroy us.
• Invest in publicly-owned and controlled renewable energy. Oppose fracking.
• Move to sustainable, low-pollution industry and farming - stop the pollution that is destroying our environment. No to profit-driven GM technology.
• Produce for need, not profit, and design goods for reuse and recycling

We as candidates would add that as Socialists we would organise all neighbourhoods to form local committees to find out what local people would want to do, not just on climate issues but all problems.

• Local buses have to be electrified as soon as possible,  we would take them back into public ownership too.
• Tax big companies with large CO2 emissions forcing them to implement carbon neutral production.  
• Campaign for national funding to get car owners and taxis to change to electric vehicles too. 
• Campaign for big industry to pay for the transition, not small businesses and individuals. 
• Make all council buildings and services carbon neutral, electrify all council vehicles as soon as possible. 
• Campaign to force all housing associations and private landlords to make their properties carbon emissions free and insulate them properly and make sure they don't make their tenants pay. 
• Mass council housing programme for eco friendly,  good quality houses for all.