In December 2019, members of CEM were sitting in Manchester’s Sandbar as we saw the “exit polls” published at 10pm, predicting the Conservative victory that dashed hopes of rapid or meaningful action at national level on climate matters, for at least five years.CEM’s call to hold local authorities to account took on a new urgency. If there was to be any action, it would be here. If there was to be using Tory rule as cover, it was here too.
Nobody back then, even with the wisdom that comes with a Sandbar round, predicted the COVID-19 pandemic, or Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The former provided an opportunity to build on changing behaviour as people increased their use of bicycles on the quieter roads. The latter highlighted the dire need to get away from fossil gas for heating and electricity generation, since their price is prone to fluctuations in global supply and demand, to say nothing of the carbon emissions associated with their use, or from the fugitive emissions due to leaky pipes supplying it.
Emblematic of the failure to seize the opportunity to ‘build back better’ (remember that?) from the pandemic was the lack of cooperation or ambition from the city council or combined authority in creating pop-up cycle lanes. We wrote extensively about this, summed up by a FOIA that showed MCC not proposing any new cycle lanes or protestors creating their own pop up cycle lane to finish the job. If meaningful action is to take place to reduce the reliance many currently have upon their cars in the long term (known as ‘modal shift’), then creating an effective and safe network of cycle lanes has to be part of that, even if it is initially underutilised.
Another example of Manchester City Council’s inertia was the paltry efforts within their ‘retrofit strategy’ to insulate the old and draughty homes that many of us live in, both to reduce bills and gas consumption as a national response to the huge energy price spikes in the aftermath of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia. On top of this is the insanity of the city council’s planning department that continues to allow new houses to be built with gas boilers that we went into detail on the 4th anniversary of the climate emergency declaration.
Progress has effectively stalled at pretty much all levels of government, for example, the failure of an offshore wind capacity auction late last year by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, even if the UK Electricity Grid continues to be less carbon intensive with the subsequent claims to reducing a city or nations carbon emission. However, at what cost does this come? How much of this reduction in energy use is down to people now having to make decisions on whether they heat their homes in winter or have enough money to buy food?
Now we have a new Prime Minister and new political party in charge, that aligns with the one that has been governing the city of Manchester. MCC has regularly boasted about leading on climate, and has a specific set of ‘asks of national government’ (via the MCCA / MCCP definitely totally separate and independent entities). Will this change “at the top” lead to different outcomes for the citizens of (Greater) Manchester? Given that MCC (and other GM Councils) have thus far mostly failed to use the limited powers they do have, it shows the at best, timid and incrementalist approach our local governments are taking to the climate emergency. At worst, it shows flagrant disregard or callous ignorance of the dire predicament we are in.
The new Government’s programme of legislation doesn’t show much promise either – they have a specific bill to do with SAF (“Sustainable” Aviation Fuel) which shows that vested interests and the obsession with flight as a signifier of modernism persists in the face of grotesque inequality – the rich fly far, far more than the poor in the UK. But as we know, MCC (and again, other GMCA boroughs) are a hostage to fortune here, as they all own a stake in MAG, who own and operate three UK airports.
There remains no powers or funding for cleaning the air in our cities, which we know kills and sickens GM citizens who are exposed to illegal levels of NOx, particulates, etc. And exactly how, and how quickly, GB Energy will enable the decarbonisation of the grid is anyone’s guess, seeing as it is currently little more than a talking shop.
If we want to see effective and meaningful action on climate and the environment following this election over the next 5 years or so, we cannot just stop with voting the Conservatives out. Citizens must hold this new power to account, especially if your representative in Parliament is not known to be very progressive on these issues – or if you’re in North Manchester, an outright denier of reality.
