An opinion piece by Tim Lee, Green Party candidate for Baldock Town
The Cost of Living Crisis is painfully real for most people, barely noticed by some, and enriching a few, such are the great inequalities in our society. Several events have lead to current rapidly rising prices, high inflation: Brexit, Covid, the Ukraine war, Dependency on fossil fuels.
We have control over how dependent we are on fossil fuels. Consider how those who installed solar panels are now being rewarded with low or no cost for their electricity - and an additional income. Reducing dependence requires foresight, planning and effort.
Local communities can build better resilience against outside events. A community could build shared renewable energy generation and battery supply smoothing, but that’s quite complex. There are simpler things, like making it easy and safe to walk and cycle to fulfil your everyday needs, so you don’t need a car, local car share schemes for when you do need a car (most cars are parked 97% of the time, clogging up our streets and costing you a lot).
The actions that reduce greenhouse gases and lower the risk of climate change also benefit us financially and give greater security.
