Title

CLIMATE CHANGE

Councils need more 'funding and powers' to tackle climate change

Progress needs to be accelerated in every local area if the UK’s climate and nature targets are to be met, campaigners have said.

Progress needs to be accelerated in every local area if the UK's climate and nature targets are to be met, campaigners have said.

A new report from the charities Friends of the Earth and Ashden argued local authorities were ‘crucial' to helping the UK tackle the climate emergency.

Most councils have now declared a climate emergency and 85% have created climate action plans.

However, the study warned that the quality and scale of ambition still varied greatly across the country - in large part because of a lack of clarity from the Government about the role of councils in the journey to net zero.

Friends of the Earth campaigner Sandra Bell said: ‘Whether it's declaring a climate emergency or producing a plan to curb climate and nature breakdown, most local authorities have shown they want to do more to protect our planet.

'But, in spite of this, we're still not seeing local progress at the rate needed to halt the worst climate impacts.

‘For many councils it's a question of funding and powers - both of which are in short supply.'

CLIMATE CHANGE

Will devolution deliver on health and growth?

By Mariah Kelly | 12 September 2025

The Government must use the English Devolution Bill to set the framework required for Strategic Authorities to fulfil their role in improving the nation’s he...

CLIMATE CHANGE

The new fire and rehire regime: what you need to know

By Anna Scott | 12 September 2025

Rebecca McGuirk and Anna Scott look at details of the Employment Rights Bill and say if there are plans to vary terms and conditions over the next few months...

CLIMATE CHANGE

Warmer Homes London: A blueprint for greener, healthier, and fairer communities

By Brenda Dacres | 10 September 2025

Mete Coban and Brenda Dacres explain how Warmer Homes London is uniting boroughs, housing providers, and partners to scale up home retrofit across the capita...

CLIMATE CHANGE

Fair Funding Review 2.0 and the road to reorganisation

By Tracy Bingham | 10 September 2025

Councils will have to grapple with risks, resilience and reform as they balance the fallout from fair funding with the challenge of reorganisation, writes Tr...

Popular articles by William Eichler