Experts and politicians in the South East agree that both 'sticks and carrots' are urgently needed to encourage every one of us to change our lifestyles. This was the clear message from a regional Climate Change Summit organised by the South East England Regional Assembly in Brighton on Friday (30 March).

The Summit, hosted jointly with the South East Climate Change Partnership, was attended by more than 130 organisations from local government, business, environmental and social sectors. It called for more flexibility for councils to set and enforce higher building standards than existing ones and ways to encourage consumers to make more environmentally responsible choices, and Government guidance to help deliver these objectives. There was great commitment to reduce our carbon output through better planning and lifestyle changes.

The Assembly launched a practical guide at the Summit for planners, local councils, developers, regulators and service providers to inform their plans. The guide explains how new housing can be designed making it more resilient against a changing climate preparing for hotter summers and wetter winters and ways to ensure new homes are water and energy efficient. It will help deliver the Assembly's South East Plan, a 20-year planning framework.

Summit Chairman and Assembly's Planning Committee Cllr Christine Field, said:

"We need action now on climate change from individuals and organisations because we can all make changes in our lives and choices. The Summit heard views and good practice from the region and there is a real appetite among councils, communities and business to rise to the challenge of climate change but councils need help from Government to deliver more sustainable lifestyles. There is no more waiting time."

The Summit heard good practice from Brighton and Hove council on renewable energy and zero carbon developments, Eastleigh and Woking councils on efficient and ground-breaking heating systems, and presentations from Southern Water, Friends of the Earth, the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change and the Association of British Insurers.

Contacts

Lesley van Dijk, Assembly PR Executive - 01483 555223

Heather Bolton, Assembly Communications Director - 01483 555220

Notes to editors:

1. Photos from the Summit are available on request.
2. Link to Climate Change Summit 2007 and practical guide
3. The carbon emissions that were generated from the Summit have been offset through Climate Care making the event climate neutral.
4. The South East England Regional Assembly is a partnership of councils and communitities in the South East. It was established in January 1999 to give a representative voice to the South East region, which covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East and West Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, and Surrey.
5. The Regional Assembly is made up of 112 members including elected councillors nominated by the region's local authorities and 37 representatives from other sectors of the community (including business, trades unions, education, housing, health, sports, culture, tourism, faith groups, environmental, community and voluntary organisations) as well as the New Forest National Park Authority.
6. The Assembly has four key roles:
• Advocacy
  pressing the South East's interests in London and Brussels.
• Accountability
  scrutinising the plans and performance of regional bodies such as SEEDA to align the region's priorities.
• Regional planning
  preparing and delivering the South East Plan - the 20-year statutory plan for the region that sets the framework for the sustainable development of the South East.
• Regional policy
  advising Government on the co-ordination of regional strategies and spending priorities for housing, transport, planning and economic development to improve the impact of public expenditure.

Our vision is for a distinctive, outward-looking, accessible region of prosperous, sustainable communities, with a high quality of life and environment.

Last updated: 21 August 2007