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Green councillor Katie Dawson
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£3m green fund ‘tilting at windmills’, say critics
TOWN Hall plans to spend £3 million on the environment were dismissed this week as “tilting at windmills”.
Labour councillors described the plans as a wasted opportunity, although Green councillor Katie Dawson, while critical, said they were a step in the right direction.
Islington Council plans to create a £3 million Climate Change Fund, the first of its kind in a London borough, to pay for capital projects that will reduce CO2 emissions.
The fund will provide cash for solar panels, wind turbines, biomass boilers and ground source heat pumps.
Labour councillor Paul Convery told Tuesday night’s full council meeting that climate change was one of the biggest challenges facing the world and it was important to get it right.
He added: “Instead of wind turbines, how about insulating homes. It could cut electricity consumption by 25 per cent.”
He called for the money to be spent on improving public transport across the borough. “I’m not just talking about the A1 project but all the other parts of the borough,” he said. “Seventy years ago there were seven tramlines crisscrossing the borough. That would reduce car journeys.
“And what about giving traffic wardens a proper job and making them responsible for reporting litter, eyesores and graffiti?”
Cllr Dawson praised the fact that the Lib Dems will be spending an extra £3 million on green issues. She said: “But why did we not see the plans until the day before the meeting and why so much secrecy?
“Windmills are window dressing. They are not the best form of renewable energy or the most efficient, particularly in urban areas. But they are highly visible, councils like them and they look really funky. Loft insulation is hugely more efficient.”
Council Lib Dem leader Councillor James Kempton said: “Politicians everywhere are talking tough about tackling climate change. In Islington, we’re putting our money where our mouth is, helping people to take real action which will make a difference globally as well as locally.
“We hope by taking this bold step to persuade other local authorities to follow Islington’s lead and take firm action to reduce their borough’s carbon emissions.”
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