Rural areas face unfair barriers to cutting carbon, say leaders

The council leader in North Yorkshire, by far the largest countryside area in England, is among 21 politicians from all parties who say their regions are blighted by lower budgets and by funding rules which favour urban concentrations where they may have less effect on the environment.

In an open letter to Ministers ahead of a likely stimulus announcement by the Chancellor in the next two weeks, they call for funding packages – including the proposed £100bn National Infrastructure Strategy which was postponed from the Chancellor’s Budget in March – to target rural as well as urban areas.

They also challenge the “myth” that the countryside is “peripheral” to the economy and climate change, saying that “rural communities are on the front line of feeling the effects of climate change” and that “the countryside offers far more than a place to plant millions of trees to offset carbon emissions”.

Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council, which is part of the new Countryside Climate Network, said the region had “an ambitious target” for carbon neutrality, adding: “We are committed to actions, not just words.”

Steve Count, chairman of the network, said it was “frustrating” that green recovery packages had failed to “find the right balance”.

He said rural authorities were burdened by having to fund broadband, transport and other services for remote communities which in urban areas were left to private enterprise.

“We have decided to take a stand,” he said. “These examples of typical rural disadvantages add up.

“It means our stretched resources are diminished, making the challenge of funding sustainable solutions even harder. We need a green recovery that works for the two thirds that live outside the most urban cities and towns.”

Government figures suggest that nearly twice as much is spent on urban residents than those in the countryside, and the group says the rules on funding are “not consistently applied”.

Polly Billington, director of UK100, which campaigns on climate change, said: “Climate change affects every area and rural towns can be more vulnerable to the impacts, such as extreme weather.”

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