Agenda item

Committee Climate Statements

Report of the Executive Director City Futures

Decision:

12.1

The Executive Director of City Futures submitted a report that:

 

1. Responds to the Annual Climate Progress Report 2022/23 in a timely manner;

 

2. Restates the cross-party council commitment to taking what action we can to address the climate emergency, adapt our city and council for a changing climate and reduce emissions to achieve our ambition to be a net zero city and council by 2030; and

 

3. Increases understanding of the impact climate change will have on committees, the opportunities that tackling climate change offers, and the contribution to climate and net zero action each committee is currently making and needs to make moving forward.

 

 

12.2

RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY: That Strategy and Resources Policy Committee:

 

(a) welcomes the Committee Climate Statements, as detailed in the report now submitted, and notes that these are work in progress and will evolve over time; and

 

(b) requests that each Policy Committee consider and, if not previously agreed, agree (with or without amendments) their respective statement to ensure that the proposed actions contained in such statement are reflected in their Work Programme.

 

 

12.3

Reasons for Decision

 

 

12.3.1

It is important that the response to the Annual Climate Progress Report is open and transparent in setting out the challenges which the local authority faces in making progress and clarifies future expectations on the part we all have to play in addressing climate change.

 

 

12.3.2

Committee do not currently have specific strategic goals for climate. The process required to develop these, and have the statements approved to be read at each committee meeting meant that option 5.2 in the report was not feasible with the available resource and timeframe.

 

 

12.4

Alternatives Considered and Rejected

 

 

12.4.1

Not providing committee climate statements considered due to the resource required to collate.

 

 

12.4.2

Providing more detailed Committee Climate Statements that provided an overview of strategic climate goals, with each Chair then reading the committees statement publicly at their respective committee meeting following release of the report

 

Minutes:

12.1

The Executive Director of City Futures submitted a report that:

 

1. Responds to the Annual Climate Progress Report 2022/23 in a timely manner;

 

2. Restates the cross-party council commitment to taking what action we can to address the climate emergency, adapt our city and council for a changing climate and reduce emissions to achieve our ambition to be a net zero city and council by 2030; and

 

3. Increases understanding of the impact climate change will have on committees, the opportunities that tackling climate change offers, and the contribution to climate and net zero action each committee is currently making and needs to make moving forward.

 

 

12.2

RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY: That Strategy and Resources Policy Committee:

 

(a) welcomes the Committee Climate Statements, as detailed in the report now submitted, and notes that these are work in progress and will evolve over time; and

 

(b) requests that each Policy Committee consider and, if not previously agreed, agree (with or without amendments) their respective statement to ensure that the proposed actions contained in such statement are reflected in their Work Programme.

 

 

12.3

Reasons for Decision

 

 

12.3.1

It is important that the response to the Annual Climate Progress Report is open and transparent in setting out the challenges which the local authority faces in making progress and clarifies future expectations on the part we all have to play in addressing climate change.

 

 

12.3.2

Committee do not currently have specific strategic goals for climate. The process required to develop these, and have the statements approved to be read at each committee meeting meant that option 5.2 in the report was not feasible with the available resource and timeframe.

 

 

12.4

Alternatives Considered and Rejected

 

 

12.4.1

Not providing committee climate statements considered due to the resource required to collate.

 

 

12.4.2

Providing more detailed Committee Climate Statements that provided an overview of strategic climate goals, with each Chair then reading the committees statement publicly at their respective committee meeting following release of the report

 

(NOTE: During the discussion of the above item the Committee agreed, in accordance with Council Procedure rules, that as the meeting was approaching the two hours and 30 minutes time limit, the meeting should be extended by a period of 30 minutes).

 

Supporting documents: