Reading Borough Council is ‘trashing the environment’ by falling behind on its climate action goals, according to the Green Party.
The Green Party has accused Reading Borough Council of ‘trashing the environment’ by missing its climate action targets.
As the largest opposition party on the council, Green councillors claim that the Labour administration has fallen short in cutting CO2 emissions, leading to higher pollution and a delay in creating a cleaner environment.
Labour's own figures show they aimed to reduce emissions to 3,145 tonnes by 2024/25 but instead recorded 4,660 tonnes. For the whole of Reading, the target was 345,000 tonnes, but actual emissions hit 427,000 tonnes, indicating a significant failure to meet local and national climate commitments.
Green councillor Dave McElroy expressed frustration, stating, “This isn’t good enough. Just look outside at the traffic jams and poorly insulated homes to see how the council is damaging our environment.” He stressed the need for Labour councillors to focus on climate action and highlighted the government's lack of support for essential funding in areas like home insulation and transport.
In a recent council meeting, a report revealed Reading has maintained its place on the Carbon Disclosure Project’s ‘A’ list for cities taking strong climate action, ranking it among 122 cities globally. Additionally, the emissions in Reading have decreased by 57.3% since 2005, marking it as the 12th largest reduction out of 374 UK local authority areas.
Recently, Green and Labour councillors clashed over Labour's policy of implementing emissions-based parking charges. While the Greens ultimately supported the policy, leader Rob White argued it unfairly impacts those living in homes without driveways.
James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter
