Meeting held on Monday 15th October 2018
11 people were present and two gave their apologies.
It was reported that Ruth George (MP High Peak) identified her main local priorities for the improvement of life in the Hope Valley to be: housing; criminality and police support; rural services (eg local buses). We welcomed her energetic local activity.
We were concerned that the Labour Party policy of Gordon Brown regarding home insulation should be re-activated. Ruth is to be written to about this. This would be one of the swiftest ways of reducing carbon emissions, while providing jobs. Regarding ‘affordable’ housing, we were concerned that developers invariably got around such policies. When they appealed against Peak Park requirements, they usually won their cases simply because the Park does not have the finance to mount adequate legal challenges to their appeals. Housing developments on the site of the Marquis of Granby are still undecided. Our experience was that Local Councils were also totally inadequate regarding such matters as affordable housing.
A recent authoritative Climate change report indicated that significant changes would have to be made over the next 12 years. But this was no longer considered, by the media, to be newsworthy. Was this because of its perceived lack of importance, or because everyone is so aware of climate change issues that it is no longer striking? Perhaps the most significant social changes that take place are not normally the consequence of ‘news’ but rather a steady change of perception, values, etc.
We reflected upon Michael Gove’s recommendation that ‘public money should be spent on public good’ (e.g. regarding climate change). As part of this concern, he recommends that the Peak District (as a national park) should be used as a site for monitoring environmental changes. We supported his apparently progressive statement. We also supported Caroline Lucas’s statement that fracking should be opposed as increasing reliance upon fossil fuels as well as causing environmental damage. We were aware for the need for changes in terms of public policy (eg regarding fracking),but what can we do as individuals? We rejected the idea that either political action or individual responsibility should be the priority. Each presented its own challenges. Much had been made of the principle of the ‘nudge’ as a means to large social change (eg a mere 5pence charge for a plastic bag as led to a reduction of 85% in their usage). But a stronger political lead was needed.