The extent of climate change denial within Barnet Conservative Councillors has been revealed.

Conservatives spoke against a motion recommitting Barnet Council to its net zero targets of 2030 for the council and 2042 for the borough as a whole. “Net Zero” means putting no more climate change causing carbon into the atmosphere than the amount taken out.

The Council reasserted its commitment to Net Zero after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s announcement scaling back of ambition on the issue.

But Barnet Conservatives went further than the Prime Minister, implying that there may not be a problem at all.

Edgware’s Conservative Councillor Nick Mearing-Smith said: “There is no evidence that extreme weather is being caused by climate change.”

Meanwhile, Conservative Councillor David Longstaff of Barnet Vale said that Climate Change needed to be tackled only: “If scientists are right, which admittedly they have not been in the last fifty years.”

Councillor Giulia Innocenti of Childs Hill who proposed the motion was baffled by the Conservative comments and urged Council “to aim higher than that” if it was to meet its Net Zero target.

Cllr Alan Schneiderman, lead member for Environment and Climate Change, said: “We said that the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, would encourage climate change denial by getting into a muddle on Net Zero.

“Sure enough, confusion from Mr Sunak was enough for some Barnet Conservatives to reveal themselves as Climate Change deniers.

“Even if the Government are wobbly on our future and our children’s future, in Barnet we will be installing more electrical vehicle charging points, planting more trees and ensuring viable transport choices are available.

“Other measures include:

– Retrofitting social housing to be more energy efficient.

– More air quality monitoring

– Installing more electrical vehicle charging points as that is what residents want

– Grants of up to £15,000 for community groups towards environmental initiatives.”

Ends 

Conservative councillors’ climate change denying comments can be found on the recording of the meeting of Barnet Full Council on 17th October 2023 at 1:52:10 and 2:01:35: Link

Barnet Labour committed a Net Zero borough by 2042 in its election winning manifesto in 2022, and declaring a Climate Emergency, which it did in its first year of administration. The Manifesto can be found here.