Environmental hustings

On 28 April 2022, we and Sustainable Merton were pleased to hold an environmental hustings ahead of the May local elections. Kindly hosted by Trinity United Reformed Church in Wimbledon, the event gave residents the chance to hear how each of the main political parties in Merton plans to address a range of climate, biodiversity and local environment issues.

Left to right: Mariana Pacheco, Co-Coordinator of Merton FOE, Cllr Natasha Irons, Cllr Anthony Fairclough, Gabriel Partos, Co-Coordinator of Merton FOE, Cllr Edward Foley, Cllr Daniel Holden, Pippa Maslin, Diana Sterck, CEO of Sustainable Merton.

The panel consisted of the following party representatives:

• Councillor Daniel Holden, Conservative Party

• Pippa Maslin, Green Party

• Councillor Natasha Irons, Labour Party

• Councillor Anthony Fairclough, Liberal Democrats

• Councillor Edward Foley, Merton Park Ward Independent Residents

There were also plenty of questions from local residents, covering a wide range of topics such as tax breaks on insulation, stopping the use of pesticides / herbicides, increasing active travel and repurposing rather than demolishing buildings.

A massive thank you to Sustainable Merton, in particular its CEO Diana Sterck for chairing the event, Trinity United Reformed Church, everyone who attended and, above all, our panellists.