Across the Stroud district, there are genuinely exciting innovations and opportunities emerging from our growing clean energy infrastructure.
This transition isn’t just good for the planet — it’s good for local people too. It’s creating practical training opportunities for young people, cutting energy bills for households and small businesses, and building a more resilient local economy.
Last week in Stonehouse, I visited the Co-Op on the High Street, which has just installed nearly 300 solar panels on its roof. These panels provide cheap, renewable energy for the store and feed clean power back into the grid.
This is part of the Big Solar Co-Op, a brilliant not-for-profit organisation that shows how community co-operatives can work together for collective benefit. It’s a fantastic example of what happens when local people take ownership of local energy solutions.
I’ve long been an advocate for a “roofs first” approach — every suitable public building should have solar panels. It’s one of the simplest, most effective ways to reduce emissions and achieve net zero.
Last week, I raised this point in Parliament with the Chancellor, who confirmed that the Government will resume approvals for schools applying for loans to install solar panels. It’s a small but important step in the right direction.
I’m also pleased that solar panels will become mandatory on all new-build homes by 2027. With 1.5 million new homes planned across the UK, this commitment will go a long way towards addressing both the climate emergency and our housing crisis.
Here in Stroud, we know that hundreds of new homes are needed — and while progress on the Local Plan has stalled again, I see this as an opportunity. If we build with sustainability and climate in mind, we can create affordable, energy-efficient homes that protect both people and the planet.
What we want our government to achieve in terms of reducing inequality and improving social justice must never come at the expense of nature. To me, the two are indivisible.
That’s why I’ve called for a pause on Part III of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill — the section that deals with protections for nature and wildlife. With one in six species now at risk of extinction, we cannot afford to weaken environmental safeguards.
Stroud District Council has rightly set ambitious goals through its 2030 Strategy, and I fully support their focus on tackling the climate crisis and improving biodiversity.
Of course, none of us are perfect. There is always more we can do — as individuals, as communities, and by holding corporations and national governments to account. After all, it’s the big fossil fuel companies and outdated industries that bear the greatest responsibility for climate breakdown.
As world leaders meet for COP30 in Brazil this month, I can’t help but wonder: if we can achieve so much here in a small corner of Gloucestershire, what could the world achieve if we all really tried?
