Climate: Khan Vows Park City Amid Criticism

Sadiq Khan has promised to help make London the world’s first “National Park City” and one of the greenest cities on earth but has already been criticised for failing to keep his manifesto promises on the environment.

As part of his new draft environmental strategy for the capital the Mayor unveiled a £9m fund to help improve greener spaces for communities.

He declared that the funding would help make more than 50% of London “green” and contribute to turning the capital into a zero waste and zero emissions city by 2050.

Khan’s plans were quickly condemned by green groups for not delivering on a manifesto promise to create a not-for-profit energy company for Londoners.

Despite his promise of working towards a “greener London”, the Mayor’s new environmental strategy did not impress Caroline Russell, a Green Party member of the London Assembly, who said the failure of his environmental strategy to address his energy company pledge was “a blow to Londoners.”

“A publicly-owned Energy for Londoners was a brilliant opportunity to make a real difference to Londoners, providing residents, schools, hospitals and businesses with affordable, low-carbon energy,” she said. “It would also provide a massive opportunity to re-invest profits from the sales revenue in generating renewable energy and addressing fuel poverty with energy efficiency measures.”

The Mayor said he would use planning regulations to protect the Green Belt and ensure that new developments included more roofs covered with grass. Khan also promised to plant more trees, reduce plastic packaging waste and end reliance on fossil fuels by 2050.

He will also fund the planting of thousands of trees and improvements to community green spaces, and help London’s boroughs to provide local parks.

A Park City

The concept of a National Park City was advanced by Daniel Raven-Ellison (left), a former London geography teacher turned activist and urban “explorer” who wants to protect and increase the 47% of land in Greater London which he describes as “green space”, including parks, private gardens and “wasteland”.

Raven-Ellison and his supporters argue that London should be seen as a unique habitat that in its own way is just as ecologically rich as the Peak District.

The Park City proposal would not involve the statutory powers that are legally afforded to National Parks, instead relying on public education and the support of local boroughs to protect green space in the capital.

As a first step in his green strategy, Khan set aside a new £9m Greener City Fund for London to create and improve green spaces. Local groups can apply for the first £1m of grants to plant neighbourhood trees and maintain green community areas.

The Mayor launched his draft environment strategy for consultation at Woodberry Wetlands in Hackney, alongside the London Wildlife Trust. The strategy outlines his vision of making the city a greener, cleaner and healthier place by targeting London’s toxic air and making London a zero-carbon city by 2050 with energy efficient buildings, clean transport and energy and increasing recycling.

“London is home to outstanding green spaces that I want to protect, invest in and improve as we aim to become the world’s first National Park City,” he said.

Khan said the criteria for a National Park City would include increasing the size and quality of the capital’s green spaces and wildlife habitats and improving access to them for Londoners of all ages. His strategy would set up a Green Spaces Commission to work with environmental experts to help boroughs attract investment, and transform and preserve their parks and green spaces

The Mayor will also use his planning powers to protect the Green Belt by targeting “grey” areas to make them greener. With more Londoners living in flats and working in high rise offices, and with fewer people having access to private gardens, the Mayor wants to ensure more streets and public spaces become greener to improve health and encourage more walking and cycling.

But the hole in the entire strategy, according to the green groups, remains the lack of a publicly-owned energy company for Londoners. Instead, the strategy said there would be a tender process for the delivery of an energy supply company which would aim to offer fairer energy bills to Londoners and to encourage Londoners to switch and move away from pre-payment meters.

Laura Hill, of campaign group Switched On London, criticised the strategy as a “whitewash.”

“For all the bold words, Sadiq is dithering on the single, boldest step he could take in the fight against fuel poverty, missing the opportunity to cut bills for hard-up London households. London doesn’t need another branding exercise, we need our own public company, controlled democratically by and for Londoners.”

by Bob Graham

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