CLIMATE change proposal defeated as Tory led council voted against to train officers to develop strategy.

The West Windsor Residents Association councillor, Wisdom Da Costa, urged Royal Borough members to ‘put their money where their mouth is’ as he introduced an amendment to the budget where he proposed to secure a one off £15,000 to train up to 100 of the council’s officers to develop a concrete environmental and climate emergency strategy by June 2020 for the authority to implement.

Councillor Da Costa warned this is the Boroughs last chance to tackle climate change as scientists said humans have only five years to massively reduce greenhouse emissions to zero globally.

The ruling Tory party shot down the proposal saying it’s wrong to take the money from reserves or the training budget when they are already at a low-level.

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The leader of the council, councillor Andrew Johnson, said: “I find it greatly inconsistent, on the one hand, that members of the opposition are saying we can’t take any money out of our reserves and yet I hear their countermeasures that we need to take out £15,000.

“Pretty inconsistent given that we are hear to discuss the budget where it’s painfully clear we do not have that money to spend.”

Members of the opposition hit back saying if the council finds the money elsewhere by June, then it can be put back into the reserves or training budget.

They also accused the Tories for only saying they are committed to tackling climate change and not taking the issue seriously for voting against the proposal.

Opposition councillor, Lynne Jones, leader of the independents, said: “It’s £15,000 and that is less than we spent on plastic banners this time last year.

“So, you would rather spend £25,000 on plastic banners for political reasons than £15,000 to support climate change?

“What we are asking is that there is a commitment to a strategy by June and that officers are given the tools to ensure that strategy is fit for purpose.”

The motion was defeated 21 against and 17 for.