Liberal Democrat councillors have expressed disappointment after Labour councillors rejected their proposal to restart the Solar for Business programme across North Hertfordshire.

The Lib Dem amendment, brought forward during a recent council meeting, called for a "lessons-learned" review into why the original scheme stalled and for a new plan to prioritise rooftop solar installations in next year's budget.

The Solar for Business programme had previously been cancelled, with over £500,000 of capital funding removed from this year's budget. Labour councillors cited difficulties in attracting sufficient business interest and the need to prioritise council officers' time.

However, Lib Dems argue the council has "given up at the first hurdle" on a project that could help tackle the climate emergency and reduce the need for large-scale solar farms on the Green Belt.

Cllr Ruth Brown, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group, said:

"As we repeatedly hear at the start of these proceedings, the council has declared a climate emergency. Our words mean nothing if we do not translate this into action. The more we can do to encourage the use of solar panels on the vast amount of unused business rooftops, the better."

Following the meeting, Cllr Brown added: "I'm deeply disappointed that the administration hasn't listened to our concerns and tried harder to get traction behind a scheme that has proven successful for other councils. Liberal Democrats will continue to push for a fair deal on our environment."

North Herts Council declared a climate emergency in 2019 and has pledged to cut emissions across the district, including through renewable energy initiatives.

Back in June Climate Emergency UK assessed all UK councils on the actions they've taken towards net zero. 

North Herts were described as "average".

In response to that news Cllr Amy Allen, North Herts Council's Executive Member for Environment, said: "We're fully committed to taking real, meaningful action on climate change, which is why we declared a climate emergency and have continued to invest in reducing emissions both in our own operations and across the district.

"We've recently secured over £7.7 million in government funding to decarbonise our leisure centres – our biggest source of emissions – and this major project is now moving into the delivery phase. We've also made strong progress in switching to an electric fleet, supporting walking and cycling in the district, installing EV chargers and helping residents access schemes like Solar Together and government energy efficiency grants.

"While we welcome external scrutiny, scorecards like this don't always reflect the full picture – especially where actions are in progress but not yet completed. We'll continue to work hard, both on our own estate and in partnership across Hertfordshire, to tackle the climate emergency in a practical and sustainable way."