Opinion
Featured in: various local newspapers, September 2009
Dear Editor,
Rebuilding a strong economy and protecting the environment are certain to be two of the biggest issues our country faces over the next decade and beyond.
Ensuring that these two issues go hand in hand, and indeed complement one another, is therefore vital that when policy is being developed, both locally and nationally.
Last week Bath and North East Somerset Council voted to approve an important new strategy which will ensure our region is prepared to meet this challenge over the next couple of decades.
The 'Sustainable Community Strategy' sets out a clear framework which will ensure our area can come through the current recession with robust plans to develop a strong local economy whilst at the same time protecting our environment.
Conservatives, both locally and nationally, are leading the way in developing policy which will create a sustainable future for our communities: Environmentally sustainable, to ensure we protect and preserve the world in which we live; and economically sustainable, to ensure that in the future our economy is built on strong foundations.
The strategy local Conservatives proposed for Bath and North East Somerset is a comprehensive framework which will ensure an environmentally sustainable future for our area, whilst at the same time encourage a thriving economy. It cuts across all areas in which the Council is involved and all Council departments. And environmental sustainability runs as a golden thread throughout the whole Strategy.
These plans contain ambitious environmental goals for our region which will mean the Council not only significantly reducing its own carbon emissions, but also helping local communities and businesses reduce their emissions. These targets include cutting the Council's own carbon emissions by 30% in the next five years and working with its partners to help reduce our whole area's carbon emissions by 45% by 2026. These are ambitious aims, but achievable ones which the Council must strive to deliver.
Together with the actions we are already taking to support the local economy, this important strategy will help build a sustainable future for our region.
Yours faithfully,
Cllr Francine Haeberling,
B&NES Conservative Leader