I am delighted to report that my motion to the New Forest District Council was passed today by the council's Environment Overview and Scrutiny Panel. The motion was:
"It is widely known that energy bills have been rising at rates well above inflation in the past few years and that this is already adversely affecting businesses and causing financial hardship to many people throughout the country on low incomes, including residents of this district.
"In light of this I propose that the Council should write to the government, urging it not to make commitments to reduce carbon dioxide emissions further or faster than other major industrial nations, as such a unilateral commitment would add further increases to UK energy prices causing increasing hardship."
I am not claiming that this will make the government change tack, but it is a small step and it is small steps that may dent the political consensus here. I was pleasantly surprised by the size of the majority which was seven votes in favour with just one against and one abstention. The motion will now come back to the full council for approval. I will let readers know the final outcome in due course.
Well done. Inch by inch, step by step. We'll get there!
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