Issue - meetings

This item was deferred from the last meeting.

On a motion from Councillor Joanna Wright, seconded by Councillor Matt McCabe, it was

RESOLVED that

Council notes;

1.  That the National Grid believes it can get to 100% low carbon sources of electricity by 2035. This involves the following assumptions: there will be a massive increase in renewables, a massive increase in storage, and an increase in nuclear to around 20%.

2.  That the Government has announced an intention to intensify efforts to explore for new, and exploit existing, oil and gas resources in the North Sea, which defies advice from the Government’s Climate Change Committee and puts at risk its legal obligation to achieve Net Zero by 2050.

3.  The arguments for nuclear fission and energy generation remain contentious and therefore decisions to continue to invest in expensive, long term nuclear projects require continuous scrutiny.

4.  That new research suggests that the assumption that nuclear energy is necessary to form a baseload of energy provision may no longer be valid and that nuclear energy is now one of the most expensive forms of electricity available.

5.  That nuclear remains a high risk form of generation, that has not yet found a solution to the disposal of its waste and has the potential to cause considerable harm.

6.  That current planning policy governing renewable energy infrastructure, and onshore wind turbines in particular, needs to be amended to encourage investment and innovation in this area.

Council therefore:

1.  Calls on the Government to review approvals given for Sizewell C and for investment into nuclear energy in general.

2.  Calls on the Government to set out how renewables can end our reliance on foreign gas, instead of resorting to the exploitation of dwindling local reserves of fossil fuels, or an expansion of nuclear.

3.  Calls on the Government to back investment in renewable energy and storage, and provide financing for this.

4.  Calls on the government to change the National Planning Policy Framework on Solar Panels and Wind Turbines.

5.  Requests that the Leader write to the Secretary of State at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and local MPs to inform them of the council’s position.

[Notes;

1.  The above resolution was carried with 35 Councillors voting in favour, and 13 Councillors abstaining]

The motion as set out in the agenda and copied below was moved by Councillor Joanna Wright, and seconded by Councillor Robin Moss;

Council Notes:

1. The arguments for nuclear energy appear to be contentious and therefore decisions to continue to invest in expensive, long term nuclear projects require further scrutiny.
2. New research suggests that the assumption that nuclear energy is necessary to form a baseload of energy provision is no longer valid; neither is it valid to pursue the development of nuclear energy purely on economic grounds.
3. Nuclear energy is not a clean and safe technology and still has the potential to cause considerable harm.
4. The current planning policy that governs renewable energy infrastructure, and onshore wind turbines in particular, needs to be amended to encourage investment in this area.

Council therefore:

1. Calls on the Government to review approvals given for Sizewell C and for investment into nuclear energy in general.
2. Calls on the Government to back investment in renewable energy and provide financing for this.
3. Calls on the government to change the National Planning Policy on Solar Panels and Wind Turbines.
4. Requests that the Leader write to the Secretary of State at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and local MPs to inform them of the council’s position.

The eventual decision, on an amendment from Councillor Matt McCabe, seconded by Councillor Vic Pritchard was that;

It was RESOLVED to defer this item to the following meeting, in order for recent related developments to be taken into account and incorporated if deemed appropriate. (The aspiration being for this to be a cross party motion).

[Notes;

1.  During debate, a proposed amendment from Councillor Alastair Singleton was moved introducing the subject of fracking and Oil & Gas exploration.  A copy of the amendment has been attached to the record.  This was challenged by Councillor Wright, under Constitutional rule 3.1.27 and following advice from the Monitoring Officer, the Chair deemed this proposed amendment to be invalid.

2.  The above successful amendment to defer this item was, following further advice from the Monitoring Officer, deemed to be valid.

3.  A proposal to move to the vote was moved by Councillor Kevin Guy, seconded by Councillor Vic Pritchard, and carried by a majority of Members standing.

4.  The successful substantive was carried with 43 Councillors voting in favour, 1 Councillor voting against and 1 Councillor abstaining.]