West Yorkshire Mayor calls on Rishi Sunak to go further and faster to support region’s net zero ambitions

08 November 2022

The Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, has urged Rishi Sunak to put his plea to global leaders at COP27 for further and faster action on the climate at the heart of UK policy.  

In its response to the Government’s UK Net Zero Delivery review, the West Yorkshire Combined Authority has called for a number of actions to be put in place to support households and businesses to reduce emissions, waste and bills. 

The review, led by Chris Skidmore MP, is looking at the Government’s approach to delivering on its target to be net zero carbon by 2050. 

West Yorkshire is working towards achieving net zero by 2038 with significant progress by the end of this decade.  

The Combined Authority has called for longer-term funding to end uncertainty when investing in net zero projects, more support for households with the upfront costs of energy efficiency improvements, changes to the planning system, further devolution of powers and funding, and greater support for businesses.  

The Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin said:

“At COP27, the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has urged the world to go further and faster on the transition to renewable energy and to limit the devastating impact of the climate crisis. 

“As Mayor of West Yorkshire, I would ask him to do the same here in the UK and give local leaders the powers and funding they need to invest in the technologies that will help us achieve net zero.  

“The UK is facing the biggest cost of living crisis in memory - we need decisive action on the climate now to kickstart our economy and create thousands of new jobs.” 

When she was elected as Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin pledged to tackle the climate and environment emergency with £40 million allocated over the next three years, as well as creating new jobs in the green sector. 

Earlier this week, the Mayor announced that employers in our region had pledged to create 1,000 new well-paid, skilled, green jobs for young people. 

Last month, the Mayor launched an extension to the Combined Authority’s programme to retrofit more than 3,000 rented housing association homes with energy efficiency measures to bring down energy bills and emissions. 

Other work to transition to a net zero economy includes installing the largest rapid charging network for electric vehicles outside of London, securing funding to turn one fifth of the region’s bus fleet electric and helping to fund Leeds’s first ever public e-bike hire scheme. 

The UK Net Zero Delivery Review will be published by the Government later this year. 

Read the full response to the Net Zero Review