AS the May 4 polling date for elections to Ilkley Town Council and Bradford District Council looms closer, a hustings organised by Climate Action Ilkley filled a local hall with residents hoping better to understand candidates’ views on how to tackle the environmental crises.

Steve Peel, trustee of Climate Action Ilkley, chaired the event and began by emphasising that the charity does not support any political party or candidate.

Afterwards he said: “We thought the event was a great success. Climate change is the defining issue of our times and we felt it important to allow the people of Ilkley an opportunity to hold our candidates to account.”

Perhaps most prominent among issues raised was transport where questions included issues of how to reduce car use. There appeared to be agreement across all parties about the need for at least some implementation of the proposed 20mph speed limit, with only the Conservative candidates (David Nunns and Andrew Loy) opposing widespread use of traffic calming measures, such as speed bumps.

Ros Brown (Green) pointed out that the idea for introducing lower speed limits in Ben Rhydding and Ilkley had been championed for many years by a number of local residents and that it was in the Ilkley Neighbourhood Development Plan, which had already been approved through a local referendum.

An idea of pedestrianising The Grove produced a similar split along party lines. Andrew Loy (Conservative) said he was against the idea of permanently pedestrianising The Grove, arguing that this would push traffic onto residential streets. Amanda Simmonds (Labour) suggested that market days when The Grove was closed generated a great buzz and community spirit. Other candidates who were enthusiastic about the idea, such as Pauline Allon (Lib Dems) and Ian Smith (Ilkley Community Alliance), who noted that there would be a need to consult businesses and others before implementing such a move.

In response to a suggestion from the floor that bus services were getting worse, Nick Ryle (Labour) blamed cuts by the national Conservative government. Kath Steward (Ilkley Community Alliance) made the novel suggestion that Ilkley Town Council might be able to raise funds to offer public transport itself, such as a ring-and-ride scheme, that would help connect residents who do not have access to their own car.

A question prompted by David Attenborough’s recent Wild Isles BBC programme led Will McBain (Independent) to encourage people to resist mowing their lawns, particularly in May, to allow insects to thrive and so provide food for birds. David Nunns bemoaned the loss of green habitat for biodiversity and suggested that the protection of green belt and avoiding the sale of land to developers was a priority.

Food – particularly meat and dairy – is a significant source of carbon emissions. Ros Brown pointed to how the Town Council has met with students and heard about their campaigns to introduce ‘meat-free Mondays’ in schools and Pauline Allon suggested that there was scope to encourage restaurants to offer more plant-based options. All candidates agreed on the need to free up space for more allotments, for which there is high local demand.

Many of those attending agreed that the meeting was engaging and lively and an important part of the democratic process.