ADEPT policy paper urges government to give LAs powers to tackle net zero

A new policy position paper by the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning & Transport (ADEPT) urges the government to give more power to local authorities to enable them to tackle net zero.

Launching the Climate Change and Green Growth policy position, new ADEPT president Mark Kemp said:

"We will not meet our national net zero targets without fully enabling local councils."

The policy position sets out how a clear framework for delivery, coherent policy and powers for councils and appropriate long-term funding are all required to meet net zero targets.

The report states: "Key to achieving climate change action is behaviour change. 50 per cent of the emissions reductions needed rely on households and businesses adopting low-carbon solutions [i] - as a result, local authorities must be enabled to facilitate that behavioural change through how we design our places and where we install new infrastructure."

The policy position also calls for planning reform to be aligned with strategies for net zero and argues that "we must do more to build resilience into local and national infrastructure, and to design and deliver place-based services with this in mind.

Mark Kemp, also Executive Director of Environment and Transport at Hertfordshire County Council, said:

“Our climate is already changing – the evidence for that is overwhelming – and as a result we have to provide a rapid response. The impacts of the climate emergency are already being felt and there is much we can do around flooding and coastal erosion as well as using nature based recovery strategies to increase habitat and mitigate climate change.

“However, we will not meet our national net zero targets without fully enabling local councils.

“Investing in green skills and jobs will underpin success in meeting climate targets. Only by investing equally in new technology, multimodal transport, the circular economy and retrofitting housing, for example, along with green jobs, will we build a resilient and skilled workforce, which is equipped to transition from a fossil fuel economy to one that is fit for the future. Our communities - as well as our infrastructure - must be both resilient and sustainable and we need to be able to design and deliver services accordingly.

“I urge government to recognise the critical role of local authorities in delivering net zero and climate change action.”