Climate emergency declared

Merton Council has declared a climate emergency.

The declaration was seconded by newly elected Lib Dem councillor for Cannon Hill, Jenifer Gould, who used her maiden speech to urge the Council to take strong action against climate change.

Following the meeting Cllr Gould said:

“Our environment is one of our most precious assets, and protecting it for ourselves and for our children should be the first priority of any politician.

“I am proud that my first act as a councillor for Cannon Hill has been to second this important motion to declare a climate emergency here in Merton, and to kick-start the urgent action needed to eliminate carbon emissions in the borough.

“This is why I wanted to become a councillor - to take real action to address the issues that really concern local people. This is only the beginning, and I look forward to continuing to make a difference for residents in Cannon Hill and across Merton.”

You can watch Cllr Gould's speech here.

Liberal Democrat council group leader Anthony Fairclough added:

"I am pleased to have been able to work with the Cabinet Member to develop this Climate Change Emergency declaration for Merton.

"We pushed for the emissions of contractors like Veolia be considered part of the Council’s target to become carbon neutral by 2030. This is because we fear that the Merton’s achievements so far in reducing emissions from the 2012 base level are largely on the basis of excluding Veolia and IDVerde operations from the calculation.  

"We were also keen to create a framework that gives the new working group space to come up with innovative ways support residents and businesses reduce emissions – and yet one that shows real public leadership. Accepting the Labour party's proposal of a date of 2050 to make the borough carbon neutral is a compromise. It’s in line with both national targets and Council fears about cost and ability to meet targets - but with the caveat that we want to see as much active support as possible for people to cut their carbon emissions, with the aim that carbon neutrality is reached as soon as possible and before 2050.