Agenda and minutes

To consider any appeals in accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules (in the event of an appeal the press and public will be excluded).

(*In accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2, written notice of an appeal must be received by the Head of Governance Services at least 24 hours before the meeting)

There were no appeals against the inspection of documents.

1)  To highlight reports or appendices which officers have identified as containing exempt information, and where officers consider that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information, for the reasons outlined in the report.

2)  To consider whether or not to accept the officers recommendation in respect of the above information.

3)  If so, to formally pass the following resolution:-

RESOLVED – That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following parts of the agenda designated as containing exempt information on the grounds that it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the press and public were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information, as follows:-

The agenda contained no exempt information.

To identify items which have been admitted to the agenda by the Chair for consideration

(The special circumstances shall be specified in the minutes)

No late items of business were added to the agenda.

To disclose or draw attention to any interests in accordance with Leeds City Council’s ‘Councillor Code of Conduct’.

No declarations of interest were made.

To receive any apologies for absence from the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Newton and Polly Cook, Chief Officer, Climate, Energy and Green Spaces.

a)  To approve the minutes of the last formal meeting held on 6^th June 2023.

b)  To receive and note the meeting notes of the Consultative Meeting of Members of the Climate Emergency Advisory Committee meeting held on 16^th October 2023

RESOLVED -

a)  That the minutes of the last formal meeting of the Climate Emergency Advisory Committee held on 6^th June 2023 be approved.

b)  That the meeting notes of the Consultative Meeting of the Climate Emergency Advisory Committee held on 16^th October 2023 be noted.

At the discretion of the Chair, a period of up to 15 minutes may be allocated at each ordinary meeting for members of the public to make representations or to ask questions on matters within the terms of reference of the Committee. No member of the public shall speak for more than five minutes in the Open Forum, except by permission of the Chair.

Please note: Members of the public are asked to submit a video of their question or statement to climate.emergency@leeds.gov.uk  by 5.00 pm on Thursday 23^rd November 2023.

No matters were raised under the Open Forum item, however the Chair reported on discussions held with contributors to previous meetings, particularly on the Council’s approach to consultation. With the agreement of the Committee, the Chair undertook to write to the Council’s leadership team to highlight that all public consultations should be as inclusive and accessible to residents as possible.

The Chair also reported that responses had been sent to contributors to the October meeting Open Forum on the following issues:

·  Hydro electricity

·  Rooftop Gardens

·  Zero Carbon Energy Markets

Communities & Business Engagement WG – Councillor Shahzad reported on discussions held with Emma Beverley, Leeds 2023, which focussed on the practical challenges faced in terms of keeping events sustainable, such as the use of generators, energy and Wi-Fi. Use of a temporary sustainable barn had been successful for an event on Woodhouse Moor and it would be re-used for future events. The availability of public transport was also identified as an issue and the WG felt that further discussions were needed on bespoke provision timed to support events in the city.

The WG had noted that Leeds City Council (LCC) had subscribed to Sustainable Arts in Leeds (SAIL) and Councillor Shahzad encouraged all arts organisations to join.

Food labelling to highlight the carbon impact of the food purchased was also discussed, noting that a trial would be implemented at the Temple Newsam House café with results to be analysed on completion.

Infrastructure, Planning & Building WG – Councillor Dye reported on discussions on the Home Upgrade Grant, where LCC had received funding to upgrade homes not currently connected to the gas network, and how to encourage uptake. Information would be provided to all Councillors on eligibility for the scheme in order to identify residents who may wish to participate.

Discussions also focussed on the Update to the Energy Act and the forward plan to identify future items of business.

It was noted that the 4 WG Chairs would meet in December to discuss the forward plan and Members were encouraged to feedback items of interest to The Committee Chair for inclusion.

Additionally, dates for the Economy & Finance and Biodiversity, Food & Waste WGs were being considered and invitations would be sent to all Councillors in due course.

RESOLVED – To note the updates provided.

To consider the report of the Chief Officer Climate, Energy and Green Spaces, on the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) - a global non-profit that runs the world’s environmental disclosure system for companies, cities, states and regions. The report advises the Committee that on 14th November 2023, CDP confirmed that Leeds had received an ‘A grade’ in 2023.

The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer Climate, Energy and Green Spaces, on the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) - a global non-profit that runs the world’s environmental disclosure system for companies, cities, states and regions.

Since 2021, Leeds had submitted a public disclosure to CDP detailing the city’s annual emissions, as well as the city’s projects, programmes, and policies relating to climate change. On 14th November, CDP confirmed that Leeds was one of 119 cities to receive an ‘A grade’ in 2023. The 2023 submission to CDP was attached an appendix to the report.

The Chair highlighted that CDP was a worldwide initiative and welcomed the news that Leeds had retained its status as an A Grade city. In noting the volume and detail in the report, the Chair expressed thanks to the officers who provided the submission to CDP as it provided a superb summary of a huge amount of work taking place in Leeds.

The Committee noted that the full feedback from CDP would follow in due course which will report on those areas where improvements may be needed.

The Executive Member for Climate, Energy, Environment and Green Spaces commended the work of the CEGS team in compiling the submission, noting that the submission drew information across all council services. He reported that Leeds was one of the few councils to attain the A Grade two years in a row and was also reported to be the Council rated most likely to achieve net zero.

The Committee discussed the following comments:

·  The cost of CDP.

·  Benefits of having CDP and the weight it gives to Leeds’ climate change work.

·  Breakdown of CDP A grade cities throughout the world/mapping of their locations and having sight of the reports on other A grade cities to use as comparisons to show the measures they had implemented which may be of interest to Leeds.

·  That the full CDP feedback report be brought to a future meeting and considered as a tool to determine the next steps to take and to inform where LCC makes investments/how funding can be drawn down to target hard to reach communities.

(Cllr Carlisle joined the meeting at this point)

RESOLVED - To welcome the recognition of Leeds as one of 119 cities across the globe awarded an ‘A grade’ by international authority the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), for the second consecutive year.

(Councillor Rafique withdrew from the meeting for a short while at this point)

To receive a verbal update from the Director of City Development.

The Director of City Development, Martin Farrington, provided an update to the Committee on the work of the Department. The accompanying presentation focussed on the following key matters:

Economic Development.

·  Climate Change was embedded at the heart of the Inclusive Growth Strategy (launched in September 2023) and the city’s Innovation Vision to ‘Stimulate innovation which drives and delivers measurable impact towards a healthier, greener and inclusive future for Leeds and the world’.

·  The Destination Marketing and International Relations plan (approved by Executive Board in October 2022) sets out how the city will drive sustainable tourism.

·  The Future Talent Plan focussed on developing green skills and providing pathways into green jobs along with upskilling/re-skilling the existing workforce to enter the burgeoning green job marketplace. It was reported that there were approximately 20,000 net zero jobs across 470 companies in Leeds.

·  The update of the Leeds Local Plan will focus on net zero, renewable energy generation, flood management and green and blue infrastructure through work on the Flood Alleviation Scheme, District Heating Scheme, to deliver Net Zero Homes, Woodland Creation, delivery of Green Spaces and support for Electric vehicles.

Culture

·  Sustainable Arts in Leeds (SAIL) is a not-for-profit member's network supporting more than 300 Cultural and Creative industries across Leeds to realise an ambition for a zero emissions/zero waste sector. Leeds Culture Trust works with SAIL as a core delivery partner for Leeds 2023 Sustainable Action Plan.

·  LCC signed up to the "Eurocities – Lille Call to Action for low carbon and more inclusive culture" and is developing an action plan around climate and sustainability priorities. 

·  The Major Events Framework sets out the Council’s commitment to ensure that all major events contribute towards the city’s ambition to become net zero by 2030.

Planning and Sustainable Development

·  The Local Plan Update will ensure that planning policies address the climate emergency, through focussing on net zero, renewable energy generation, flood management and green and blue infrastructure through work on the Flood Alleviation Scheme, District Heating Scheme, to deliver Net Zero Homes, Woodland Creation, delivery of Green Spaces and support for Electric vehicles.

·  Consultation on an update of the separate Leeds Local Plan 2040 took place in 2023 and further consultation is anticipated in the summer of 2024 on detailed policies and development sites on housing, the spatial strategy, economic development, transport and connectivity.

Asset Management and Regeneration

·  Aire Park is being brought forward to provide interconnected, biodiverse and climate resilient interlinked spaces.

·  The “Our Spaces Strategy” adopted in March 2020 supports the delivery of all new greening proposals in the city and delivered key projects including the Playhouse Gardens and public spaces at the Corn Exchange and Cookridge Street.

·  Housing Growth – 1900 new build proposals are being taken forward which include low carbon measures for the majority of the current council housing programme.

·  The Sustainable Travel Gateway had created pedestrian priority outside the city station, cycle hub and segregated cycle lanes to promote an alternative to cars.

·  The Directorate continued to work Estate  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

To receive the report of the Chief Officer, Climate, Energy and Green Spaces which provides the Committee with an oversight of the Leeds Food Strategy.

The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer, Climate, Energy and Green Spaces which provided an oversight of the Leeds Food Strategy.

Andrew White, Climate, Energy & Green Spaces team and Sonja Woodcock, Zest and Food Wise Leeds provided a presentation, highlighting the following issues to the Committee:

·  The background to the development of the current Leeds Food Strategy which was launched in July 2023, as a partnership of Food Wise Leeds and Leeds City Council (Public Health, Financial Inclusion, Climate, Energy & Green Spaces teams). The Strategy has three missions which align with the three pillars of the Leeds Best City Ambition:

o  Mission 1: To improve the health and wellbeing of everyone in the city through eating well.

o  Mission 2: To ensure we can all access affordable, nutritious food as part of a diverse, inclusive, and vibrant food economy.

o  Mission 3: To ensure the way Leeds produces, consumes, and disposes of food is fit for the future and supports our climate action plan.

·  Each mission has its own objectives which reflect the what the Council can undertake and the areas where the Council will work in partnership. Each objective will be implemented differently in response to different parts of the city.

·  The Strategy includes 42 actions and overall progress on the actions will be reported to Executive Board in Spring 2024.

During discussions the following issues were identified as matters to explore:

·  A review of the food offer in leisure and cultural sites, such as vending machines in leisure centres, to ensure healthy options were more readily available and promoted. It was noted that the Public Health team had undertaken work on vending machines on the LCC estate and that the snacks offered were under a specific calorie level. It was felt that the initial focus for the council needed to be on the food the Council served and procured, however the discussion had identified a further challenge to follow up with procurers.

(M Shahzad and A Hannan withdrew from the meeting at this point)

·  Further work with schools and colleges which did not buy food from the Council to encourage a broad offer of food for students was available. Anecdotal evidence showed that if students did not find something they wanted to eat at school/college, they would be likely to buy food from fast food/high street on the way home.

·  Having more space to grow in the city centre and further discussions on the city’s land use strategy.

·  Work with the farming community to ensure they followed good employment practices, noting that the Strategy reflected on the broader aim for sustainable good places to work with. It was also noted that the team were working to build good relationship with the National Farmers Union.

The Committee noted the reported difficulties in implementing community composting schemes due to an issue with Waste Transfer Licences which community composting should be exempt from. This issue needs to be resolved to enable the project to flourish. Members lent their support  ...  view the full minutes text for item 23.

To receive and consider an update on the work of the Yorkshire and Humber Climate Commission and Leeds Climate Commission. The Co-Director of the Yorkshire & Humber Climate Commission and the Research Fellow from Leeds Climate Commission will attend the meeting to present the report.

The Committee received a Briefing Report on the work of the Yorkshire and Humber Climate Commission and the Leeds Climate Commission. The paper provided context to discussions on priorities for integrated climate actions across the city and how the Commissions could effectively work with the Committee.

Rosa Foster, Co-Director, Yorkshire & Humber Climate Commission and Amelia Duncan, Leeds Climate Commission Research Fellow, attended the meeting and provided a presentation which included the following matters:

·  The first Climate Commission was established in 2017 in Leeds, recognising that the public/private and Third Sector needed to work in partnership to address climate change and had received funding to continue until 2030. 20 Climate Commissions (CC’s) were now established nationwide.

·  The Yorkshire & Humber CC (Y&H CC) was established in 2021 in response to regional flooding and was funded to continue to 2030. The Y&H CC aims to build a reginal picture and evidence base and;

-  Mobilise existing capacity across all organisations to act on climate change,

-  Discuss the issues and develop a collective approach and response to national policy,

-  Focus on communities and engagement,

-  Establish a Public Affairs Group in 2024,

-  Review and analyse progress regularly.

·  Referencing the Update from the Director of City Development (minute 22 above) it was reported that the Yorkshire Leaders Board had recently approved 8 planning principles which could be shared with the Committee following the meeting.

·  The Leeds CC had undertaken a strategic review and refresh of its principles including specific pieces of work to independently evaluate progress on climate action in the city – to identify what has been successful, and what the city has struggled to achieve.

·  The next steps for the Leeds CC were outlined as:

-  To convene, learn from the review and to facilitate the future approach,

-  To act as a catalyst and driver for change and collaboration

-  To publish the plans for next steps and appoint new commissioners in 2024.

During discussions, the following matters were considered:

·  Recognition that not all residents used digital or social media outlets and some communities interested and active in climate change would not access the data to be published through Common Place. It was noted that the establishment of the Public Affairs Group would consider how to reach those communities. The roles of local networks such as schools and Neighbourhood Networks were highlighted as useful contacts.

·  The importance of social/cultural work to build enthusiasm for climate change work. A suggestion was made that the Y&H CC could undertake an experimental campaign or mapping exercise on what is available in communities and to find ways to reach key people embedded in communities to highlight the offer. The Committee was requested to consider the suggestion and provide information for the Y&H CC to consider.

·  The importance of encouraging people to act confidently to tackle climate change. It was noted that young people can feel hopeless in the face of the enormity of the issue, but there was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

To note the date and time of the next meeting as Friday 15^th December 2023 at 2.00 pm

RESOLVED – To note the date and time of the next meeting as Friday 15^th December 2023 at 2.00 pm.