Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Finance and Local Government – in the Senedd at 1:46 pm on 17 November 2021.
Thank you very much, Llywydd. In light of COP26 last week, I want to talk abut the role of local government in helping Wales to meet its commitments in terms of cutting carbon emissions, and your role as Minister for local government in that regard. I understand that 16 local authorities have now declared a climate emergency. That's a starting point in a longer process, but it is disappointing that there are six authorities that have yet to do that. But making a declaration is the easy thing to do; it's the action that's important in light of that. And there are different local authorities at different stages of that journey—some are more bold and are dealing with the issue in a more meaningful and ambitious way than others perhaps. But my first question to you is: what are you doing to encourage, to support and even to enforce, in some scenarios, local authorities in Wales to help in achieving our aims and reducing emissions?