Local authorities employ 2 million staff, own 3½ million homes and spend £100 billion a year.  Policies and initiatives developed by local authorities can therefore have a massive environmental impact. 

Following on from the success of the Big Ask campaign, to get legislation passed placing a legal duty on the Government to achieve big cuts in the UK's greenhouse gas emissions, Friends of the Earth are now running a campaign to get local authorities to agree a target of achieving a 40% cut in their area's CO2 emissions, by 2020.  We are also campaigning for them to adopt the necessary policies to achieve this.  In addition, we are campaigning for all local authorities to be given mandatory targets for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions; and for local authorities to be given the necessary powers and resources to meet these targets.

The campaign was launched, in the summer of 2009, with publication of a study showing how local authorities could achieve the 40% target and how many jobs could be created in the process.  The study included specific proposals for Leicester.

Following on from this, Leicester FoE have produced a "Green Manifesto" for Leicester, launched on 22.2.10.  The manifesto sets out more detailed proposals for policies that we would like to see adopted locally.  The proposals in the manifesto go beyond measures aimed at reducing CO2 emissions and include measures to promote bio-diversity; and measures to help cope with the effects of climate change.  The manifesto has also been supported by Transition Leicester  If you would like to urge the City Council to implement the proposals in the manifesto please sign our petition.  We have also set up a Facebook group for the local campaign.

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