Agenda item

Cabinet Member: Climate Change Delivery and Environment

Forward Plan Ref: 2022/028

Contact: Sarah Gilbert Climate Action Team Leader, 07867 467797 / Nick Mottram, Environment and Heritage Group Manager, 07733 002171

Report by Corporate Director Environment & Place (CA8).

The Council’s Corporate Plan is ambitious for leading positive change by working in partnership to make Oxfordshire a greener, fairer and healthier County. This new Climate and Natural Environment Policy Statement (the Policy Statement) supports and strengthens this ambition to include a policy focus on environmental resilience and nature recovery.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

a)                  Agree this Climate and Natural Environment Policy Statement to ensure environmental considerations are placed at the heart of policy and decision-making across the County Council.

b)                  Re-affirm commitment to the shared environment principles of the Future Oxfordshire Partnership, set out in Appendix 1.

c)                  Lead positive change through a new County-wide strategic framework, detailed in Appendix 2, to ensure the principles for climate action, environmental resilience and nature recovery are embedded in the breadth of County Council partnership activity across Oxfordshire.

Cabinet had before it a report on the new Climate and Natural Environment Policy Statement which supports and strengthens the ambition of the Council’s Corporate Plan to include a policy focus on environmental resilience and nature recovery.

Before considering the report, the Chair had agreed to a request to speak.

Councillor John Howson welcomed the statement and accompanying recommendations but believed that the role of the school sector was under-played in the policy.  Maintained schools received a mention in the objectives but he asked for academies and private schools to be brought into the fold as key stakeholders.  There was also the question of school transport and the buses and taxis that the Council uses to bring children to school.

Nick Mottram, Environment & Heritage Manager, introduced the report.  It was built on the Oxford-Cambridge Arc Environmental Principles. Officers had sought to expand those to include, for example, climate adaptation where appropriate.

It brought together a well-developed Oxfordshire Climate Action Plan with previously less-well-developed natural environment aspirations.  The ambitions of the Policy Statement were to be delivered through more detailed strategies and plans some of which exist and some of which were to be developed, and through partnership working.  The list of services, organisations and partners was indicative and many other partners were likely to be involved, such as the school sector identified by Councillor Howson.  The detailed wording of the principles would be reviewed in response to feedback from Council services, partners and future changes in legislation and guidance, and progress monitored.  However, he noted that there was nothing in the recommendations to cover updates to the Policy Statement and asked Cabinet to consider adding such a clause.

Councillor Pete Sudbury, Cabinet Member for Climate Change Delivery & Environment, thanked officers for their work on the Policy Statement.  He noted that the Policy Statement was bringing forward the date for decarbonisation in Oxfordshire to the early 2040s instead of 2050.  It was also setting targets on decarbonisation for suppliers.  It addressed how Oxfordshire would be affected by various different global warming scenarios.

Councillor Sudbury added that there was a commitment to the circular economy and the need for Oxfordshire to become much more sustainable.  One area that he could see needed to be added was resilience to adverse weather.  He supported the proposal to add a clause relating to updates to the Policy Statement.

Other Cabinet Members welcomed the Policy Statement and made the following points:

·       The reference to the precautionary principle was crucial as it can be very difficult to predict the impact of changes.

·       Cabinet should be updated on progress in a year’s time to ensure that the Policy Statement was put into action.

·       The reference in recommendation b) to the Future Oxfordshire Partnership should be replaced by Oxford Cambridge Arc.

The Chair proposed an amendment to allow changes to the Policy Statement to be agreed by the Corporate Director Environment & Place.

The recommendations as amended were proposed by Councillor Sudbury and seconded by Councillor Hannaby.

RESOLVED to

a)              Agree this Climate and Natural Environment Policy Statement to ensure environmental considerations are placed at the heart of policy and decision-making across the County Council.

b)              Re-affirm commitment to the shared environment principles of the Future Oxfordshire Partnership Oxford-Cambridge Arc, set out in Appendix 1.

c)              Lead positive change through a new County-wide strategic framework, detailed in Appendix 2, to ensure the principles for climate action, environmental resilience and nature recovery are embedded in the breadth of County Council partnership activity across Oxfordshire.

d)              delegate authority to make amendments to the Policy to the Corporate Director Environment & Place.