Oldham Liberal Democrats think a six year wait for the establishment of a national deposit return scheme for England, Wales and Northern Ireland is too long, and Group Leader Councillor Howard Sykes MBE has written to the minister responsible to tell him so.
A deposit return, or reverse vending, scheme works through retailers charging customers a small deposit on cans, bottles and containers that can be recycled. When the customer brings the empty container back to the retailer, they get their deposit back.
In 2018, the Conservative Government promised to introduce such a scheme, but in a consultation earlier this year the start date had been pushed back to 2024, two years after Scotland.
Councillor Sykes does not think this is good enough and he has written to the Secretary of State for the Environment, The Rt Hon George Eustice MP, asking him to use the forthcoming COP26 conference on the environment, to be held in Glasgow in November, to pledge to an earlier start date.
Councillor Sykes said: “Deposit return schemes incentivise customers to recycle. They have been in place in some countries in Continental Europe for decades, and in many European countries you would be hard pressed and unfortunate to find a discarded drink can or plastic bottle. By paying people to bring them back, you avoid the rubbish that we so often see on our streets, in our parks and choking up our rivers.”
“Establishing a national scheme would be a practical and common-sense measure to help our environment, and, if this government wants to be treated as credible at COP2, it is now time for ministers to stop prevaricating and get on with it.”
Liberal Democrat councillors have responded to a recent consultation on the draft heritage strategy for the South Pennines Park by calling for further measures to promote local culture, protect the natural and built environment, and grow the local economy in a sustainable way. The deadline for responses is 29 October.
The South Pennines Park covers 460 square miles, including the Saddleworth district and Shaw, and stretches between the Peak District and the Yorkshire Dales National Parks.
In their response, the Oldham Liberal Democrat Group call for action to:
Promote local culture: The Liberal Democrats want to see recognition of the work of the Shaw and Crompton and Saddleworth Parish Councils in supporting traditional heritage activities (such as the annual rush cart festival, the ‘world-renowned’ brass band contests, and the celebration of Lancashire and Yorkshire Days) and a greater acknowledgement of the value of the Saddleworth Museum in Uppermill, with its ‘excellent and stimulating’ exhibits.
The Liberal Democrats also want to see established local arts and crafts centres or events for local artists and crafters to come together to collectively work, demonstrate (and pass on) their skills and market their products to the public.
They have also referenced the fact that Greenfield Station remains inaccessible for many people with disabilities or parents using pushchairs, meaning that many day-trippers still cannot access the beautiful Saddleworth villages or countryside by train.
Protect the environment: In their response, the Liberal Democrats call for the creation of ‘robust mechanisms’ involving multiple agencies working across local authority boundaries to address the continued and increasing threat to the natural and built environment resulting from climate change or human misbehaviour.
Risks cited include extreme weather events arising from global warming, such as drought, moorland fires and flooding; the pollution of local watercourses; the reckless use of portable barbecues on moorland, the shooting of birds of prey; and unregulated off-road motorcycling.
The Liberal Democrats are also greatly concerned at the threat posed to the Green Belt, protected open land and ancient and veteran woodlands by future housing and industrial development, particularly that proposed under the Mayor of Greater Manchester’s Places for Everyone Plan.
Growing the Local Economy: In addition to more support for community artists and craftspeople, the Liberal Democrats want to see ‘Shop Local’ loyalty schemes to encourage local people and visitors to buy locally produced goods from locally owned (rather than national chain) stores and a network of artisan markets established to enable the sale of locally produced goods where producers cannot afford fixed premises.
Local farmers who wish to diversify may have accommodation to let to holidaymakers and may wish to combine this with ‘farm experiences’ for tourists. The Liberal Democrats suggest that some way should be found to advertise this provision at a low or nil cost outside of the usual Airbnb route, and that an effort must be made to ensure that it is sustainable.
Commenting, Liberal Democrat Group Leader Councillor Howard Sykes MBE said:
“In our response, we focused on the need to protect the environment, whilst recognising the importance of promoting and celebrating our local heritage and growing our local economy sustainably to retain jobs and money in our local communities. It is my hope that some or all of our practical ideas can be incorporated into the final strategy and I very much look forward to reading it.”
Attached is the Liberal Democrat formal submission
The Leader of the Oldham Liberal Democrat Group, councillor Howard Sykes MBE, has written to the new Energy Minister asking him to pledge the government’s support for the Local Electricity Bill during COP26.
The UK will host the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow on 31 October – 12 November 2021. Here the participant nations will agree how to accelerate their actions to address climate change in accordance with their commitments as signatories to the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Councillor Sykes and his Liberal Democrat colleagues wants the new minister, The Rt Hon Greg Hands MP, to support the Local Electricity Bill, currently going through Parliament, as a government priority.
Commenting, Councillor Sykes said: “We would like the UK Government to make this pledge as one of this nation’s commitments during COP26. Locally generated power created through renewable technologies and supplied to local consumers must be one of our actions if we are to work successfully towards net zero. But, in order to do this, we must reduce the cost and eliminate the bureaucracy that local energy producers face when entering the energy market. The Local Electricity Bill will do this by creating a new Right of Local Supply so that community energy co-operatives can compete; this really will be power for the people.”
Paying home and business owners in flood areas grants up-front to make their properties ‘resilient’ is “common-sense and will save a lot of heartache” claims Liberal Democrat Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani.
Homes in Shaw and Saddleworth have previously been flooded, and with climate change resulting in warmer and wetter weather there is an increased likelihood of further flooding in future years.
Councillor Al-Hamdani and his Oldham and Saddleworth Liberal Democrat councillors want to see the government do more to support home and business owners living with the risk by paying grants up-front rather than after disaster has befallen them, and they are bringing the issue as a motion to the next meeting of Oldham Council (3 November 2021).
Commenting, Saddleworth West and Lees councillor Al-Hamdani, who is proposing the motion, said: “It is common-sense to pay property owners money up-front to make their homes and business premises ‘flood resilient’, rather than paying them afterwards when they are faced with building repairs, the replacement of lost or damaged personal effects, and an enormous clean-up. All the evidence shows this would not only save flood victims a lot of heartache, but it will also save the public a lot of money in the longer-term.”
Shaw Councillor Chris Gloster, who is backing his colleague, added: “We are also asking the Council to make local residents living in flood-risk areas aware of the services offered to property owners by the campaigning group ‘Know Your Flood Risk’. The group produces several useful booklets identifying the risks and the actions people can take in advance of a flood and offers property owners individual flood risk assessments.”
The motion to the Council meeting November 3, 2021 reads:
Motion – Future proofing our properties from flooding
Council notes that:
Climate change will result in more incidents of flooding in the UK.
The disaster relief charity ShelterBox estimated 5 million UK homes could be at risk of flooding by 2040.
Properties in Shaw and Saddleworth have historically been flooded.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to build defences capable of protecting all properties at risk of flooding.
The campaign group ‘Know Your Flood Risk’ is calling upon central Government to make grants available to homeowners and small business owners in flood risk areas to make their properties ‘flood resilient’.
Flood resilience means designing, building, and adapting properties such that if they are inundated, they can be made liveable again within days or weeks. This can involve actions such as rendering indoor walls, relaying flooring in water-proof materials or raising kitchen units.
Victims of major floods are eligible for £5,000 support after the event, but Council believes that a more sensible approach would be to provide grant aid in advance to homeowners and small business owners to help make their properties flood resilient and that this would reduce the long-term cost to the public purse. Such a proposal has the support of the National Flood Forum and the Royal Institute of British Architects.
‘Know Your Flood Risk’ also publishes online guidance for local authorities and home and business owners and offers individual flood risk surveys for property owners.
Council resolves to:
Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs requesting the Minister look to introduce grant aid to homeowners and small business owners in areas of flood risk to facilitate flood resilience work.
Ask the Chief Executive to copy in our three local MPs, the Greater Manchester Mayor and the Clerks of the Saddleworth and Shaw and Crompton Parish Councils asking for their support.
Ask the relevant Cabinet Member and Chief Officer to ensure that information about the offer to residents and small business owners of the campaign group ‘Know Your Flood Risk’ is posted, with links, on the Council’s website, and make a request to the Saddleworth and Shaw and Crompton Parish Councils to do the same.
Proposed by: Seconded by:
Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani Councillor Chris Gloster
Oldham Liberal Democrats are calling for the UK Government to do more to improve the water quality of Britain’s rivers as one of their commitments at the upcoming COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow.
Crompton Councillor Dave Murphy and Shaw Councillor Hazel Gloster will be proposing a motion to the next meeting of Oldham Council (3 November 2021) highlighting the urgent need for action, after discovering that the borough’s watercourses all failed recent tests for chemical pollution carried out by the Environment Agency and that the rivers Irk and Tame are under real threat.
Proposer of the motion, Councillor Murphy said: “It is shocking that in 2019 only 14% of England’s rivers were rated ‘good’ by the Environment Agency, despite Conservative Government promises to improve the quality of watercourses over time. Poorer water quality has an adverse impact upon the aquatic, bird and insect life that inhabits our watercourses and the humans who visit them for recreational purposes.”
“The damage is caused by the run-off of nutrients from farms and raw sewerage discharged water companies, and the rivers Irk and Tame are cited as being particularly in danger, but government funding to enable the Environment Agency to monitor and check these activities has been cut by 75% in the last decade.”
Seconding the motion, Councillor Hazel Gloster added: “Not only do we want the Environment Agency’s budget to be restored to enable it to effectively identify and prosecute offenders, but we want the National Farmers’ Union and United Utilities to account for the actions of those members and employees who engage in polluting activities and tell us what they are doing to make things right.”
Concluding Councillor Murphy said: “The COP26 conference in Glasgow will focus the world’s attention on what the UK is doing, or is pledged to do, to address climate change and the impact of mankind’s activities on the natural world. As one of those commitments, we want the UK Government to clean up Britain’s rivers so we can all continue to enjoy them”.
The motion to the Council on 3rd November 2021 reads:
Motion – Save Our Rivers
This Council notes that:
Every river in England is now polluted beyond legal limits; with the Environment Agency rating only 14% as Good in 2019.
Our local rivers, the Beal, Irk, Medlock, and Tame all failed the most recent test for chemical pollution carried out by the agency.
This chemical pollution is mostly caused by sewage discharges from water companies and the run-offs of nutrients from farms.
The Rivers Irk and Tame are particularly threatened by further sewage-water discharges.
Government funding to the Environment Agency to monitor river quality and regulate farms and water companies has dropped 75% since 2010/11.
Farms are now almost never inspected, water quality is rarely tested, and water companies can pump raw sewage into rivers with virtual impunity.
In addition, tyre rubber particles, metals from brake pads, and hydrocarbons from vehicle emissions, wash off road surfaces and into rivers, endangering wildlife and potentially introducing carcinogenic material into the water supply.
Council believes that, as host nation of COP-26 (the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties) in Glasgow on 31 October – 12 November 2021, the UK Government should commit to:
Restoring Environment Agency budgets
Increasing inspections of water companies and farms, and rigorously prosecuting offenders.
Funding local and highways authorities to introduce treatment systems to prevent road pollutants from entering our water courses.
Council resolves to request the Chief Executive write to:
The Environment Minister calling for the Government to make these commitments as host nation of COP-26.
The Chief Executive of United Utilities calling for further urgent action to address the impact of waste-water discharges on our local rivers, particularly the Irk and Tame.
The Regional Director of the National Farmers’ Union requesting clarification on the action being taken locally by farmers to prevent the run-off of nutrients into our rivers.
The charity River Action expressing this Council’s support for their campaign to restore the health of Britain’s rivers.
With our three MPs to be copied into this correspondence and asked for their support.
Oldham Liberal Democrats have welcomed the second reading in Parliament (22 October 2021) of a new bill which would bar sexual offenders from seeking, or remaining in, elected public office.
In July, Liberal Democrat Group Leader Councillor Howard Sykes MBE wrote to the Conservative MP for Mole Valley, Sir Paul Beresford, offering his support for the Local Government (Disqualification) Bill and providing his office with a comprehensive briefing on the current legal situation and options.
The bill, now published, will on becoming law disbar anyone from standing or remaining in public office who is subject to a ‘notification requirement’ or ‘order’ relating to sexual offences. Current legislation only bars individuals who receive a custodial or suspended prison sentence of three months or more.
Commenting, Councillor Sykes said: “Over the last four years, Oldham Liberal Democrats have been seeking a change in the law to bar all sexual offenders from office, and not just those who have received an actual or suspended prison sentence. We backed a cross-party motion in Oldham Council, wrote to the government and later had the issue raised in Parliament asking for such a change in legislation so I was pleased to see that Sir Paul’s bill will do exactly that.”
Although Sir Paul’s bill is a private member’s bill, rather than an official government bill, Councillor Sykes hopes it will eventually become law.
“The latest draft of this bill has been drawn up by officials from the recently renamed Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities with Sir Paul’s consent, and he has previously indicated to me that he has held promising discussions with ministers. Sir Paul told me that ‘closing this small loophole should not be a difficult matter’, and recent developments suggest that the government supports the bill, making it more likely over time to become legislation. This is one to watch.”
Notes for Editors
The Local Government (Disqualification) Bill can be found at:
