Mayoral candidates agreed over need to tackle climate change

ALL six candidates vying to become York and North Yorkshire’s first elected mayor appear to have reached a consensus on one subject – that concerted efforts to tackle climate change will be crucial to the region’s future.

Their environmental pledges range from using the region’s natural assets to boost renewable energy generation to ensuring all new buildings feature solar panels.

The candidates revealed their ambitions as environmentalists continue to exert pressure on both York and North Yorkshire councils to up their green actions.

Green Party candidate Kevin Foster said resilience to climate change and reducing impact on the climate needed to be at the heart of every action the incoming mayor took.

He said one such policy would be to reduce the number of cars in urban centres.

Independent candidate Paul Haslam, North Yorkshire Council’s climate change champion, said all his policies would support the mitigation of climate change, wherever relevant. Alongside committing to York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership’s plan to make the area England’s first carbon negative region by 2040, he said he would work on water management “as it can cripple infrastructure, damage homes and food production”.

Another Independent candidate, Keith Tordoff, said he would introduce a policy that, as part of planning approval, all new housing and commercial buildings must have roof solar panels and insulation to the highest standard.

He added he would work with Yorkshire Water to generate electricity through water turbines and create more park and ride schemes and charging points.

Labour Party candidate David Skaith said from the new homes the mayor oversees to the transport system and the direction of the region’s economy, he would “continuously make sure that all we do has a positive impact on the environment”.

Felicity Cunliffe Lister, the Liberal Democrat candidate, said to achieve net zero ambitions, more action was required at scale. She said: “I will reduce our carbon footprint by insulating inefficient homes and investing in electric vehicle chargers and drive investment into green energy generation.”

When asked about climate change Conservative candidate Keane Duncan did not respond directy, but last year warned against pledges that “sound nice on paper”, but in reality became more difficult.