The City Council have published their response to the Autumn Citizen’s Assembly, with actions including:
- £1 million of additional operational funding and £18 million of capital investment to the climate emergency
- A zero carbon building system across 8 sectors
- Implementation of 400 electric vehicle charging points
- Providing extra cycle parking in the city and working on proposals to fund the creation of cycle greenways into the city
- Ensuring carbon offsets are used only in addition to other actions.
In January 2019, Oxford City Council unanimously declared a climate emergency in Oxford and agreed to create a Citizens’ Assembly to consider new carbon targets and additional measures to reduce emissions. The Citizens’ Assembly was held over two weekends in September and October 2019.
Councillor Tom Hayes, Cabinet Member for Zero Carbon Oxford said “90% of members of the Oxford Citizens’ Assembly on Climate Change wanted us to become sustainable quicker than the legal target nationwide (2050) —a very high majority indeed.”
- So the City Council will become net zero as a Council in 2020.
- Hold a Zero Carbon Oxford summit in the early new year.
- Provide support to individuals and communities to tackle the climate emergency.