‘Cross-party talks on climate welcome’

HOW heartening it was to see so many SMDC councillors of differing political persuasions engaged in friendly and earnest discussions with members of the public, presenters (and each other!) at the Moorlands Climate Action Fair in Leek, as reported in your paper.

Even if the temperature outside the Foxlowe was bitter, mild was definitely on tap inside.

Climate change – specifically, energy use – is such a crucial issue that genuine openness and cooperation between all involved must be the way forward.

The energy crisis now facing us all has added another layer of urgency.

Frustration over the pace of change has led us all at times to entrenched positions and harshness of tone.

But the transformation of energy use so desperately needed can only be delivered by working together at the local level, whatever our differences on national policy.

We learnt from the recent, and laudable, SMDC session on fuel poverty that consultants Anthesis have reported that the district’s emissions trajectory is far away from that required to meet its 2030 Net Zero target.

Every month lost for action makes the common task that much harder.

We know that officers and elected members realise they must redouble their efforts to meet the target they freely committed themselves to.

To do so, they must genuinely engage with the community in an open and transparent manner.

We welcome SMDC’S establishment of a Green Network in the district and urge community groups to come forward to have their say.

Moorlands Climate Action is only a small part of the wider community, but a resourceful and hard-working part. We stand ready to play our role in the joint fight against climate change and for a clean, autonomous and affordable energy future in the Moorlands and beyond.

Mark Johnson

Moorlands Climate Action