Lib Dem party calls on its local councils to join 10:10 campaign

A motion calling on all Liberal Democrat councils to cut emissions 10% by 2010 will be put before the party's annual conference next week
Felicity Carus
guardian.co.uk, Friday 18 September 2009 17.15 BST
The Liberal Democrat leadership plans to mandate all its local councils to cut their carbon emissions by 10% in 2010.
A motion proposing the carbon reductions will be put before the party's annual conference in Bournemouth next week and, if passed, will be the first formal policy commitment by any political party in response to the 10:10 climate change campaign. Nationwide the Lib-Dems control 26 local authorities and hold 4,083 council seats.
The 10:10 campaign – which is supported by the Guardian – is an initiative launched this month to encourage people, businesses and organisations to reduce their carbon footprint by 10% by the end of next year. Nearly 18,000 people have joined the 10:10 campaign, including Gordon Brown and the cabinet as well as the Tory front bench and the Lib Dem leader, Nick Clegg. Over 700 businesses are also on board including Royal Mail and Tottenham Hotspur.
"The 10:10 campaign shows what can be achieved if the political will is there. Cutting emissions by 10% within 2010 is ambitious but realistic," said Simon Hughes, the Lib Dem spokesman for energy and climate change.
The motion, which will be voted on by the conference on Tuesday, will also call on all party members to sign up personally including elected representatives in Westminster, Cardiff, Holyrood and Brussels. Hughes has already called on the speaker of the house, John Bercow, to sign parliament up to the campaign but the motion will go a stage further by calling on the government to make a national commitment to cut UK emissions by 10%.
If the motion is passed next week, 10:10's organisers hope that Labour and the Tories will follow suit at their party conferences this autumn. The campaign manager, Daniel Vockins, said: "This lays down the gauntlet for the other political parties, and is a much higher target than local councils are currently committed to and hopefully lays the groundwork for deeper cuts ... This is exactly the kind of ambition we need to see from all political parties now."
Some Lib Dem led councils have already signed up to 10:10 including Camden, Cambridge, Eastleigh, Islington, Oldham, Richmond and Southwark. Sheffield and Bristol are also considering signing up. Alexis Rowel, a Camden councillor said the campaign is gaining real momentum among councils. "There is a big, inspiring effect going on here and also a grassroots push from residents. In the four years that I have been councillor, there has been nothing more significant than getting councils to sign up to 10:10."
Around 25 out of 434 UK councils have already signed up, but as well as cutting their own emissions as organisations, the Hughes conference motion also targets businesses, organisations and residents within local authorities. "Effective action on climate change is also about individuals and communities," he said.
What you can do
1. Help 10:10 reach its 20,000th sign-up by pledging your own cut at 1010uk.org. If you've signed up already, persuade a friend or relative (better still, lots of them) to join.
2. If you run a company, help 10:10 enlist its 1,000th business by signing up yours. If you work for a company write to your boss and ask them to join.
3. Help 10:10 spread its message more widely by offering financial support at 1010uk.org/donate