SENIOR councillors have criticised the way a motion to make north and west Cumbria plastic free was put forward.

Last month councillors Brian Wernham (Stanwix Urban, Lib Dems) and Chris Wills (Upperby, Lib Dems), who will both be candidates at the next general election, proposed the motion on plastic free Cumberland at last month's meeting of Cumberland Council.

It was referred to Tuesday's (February 13) meeting of the executive committee, at the Copeland Centre in Whitehaven, where members accused the pair of "political grandstanding" because they should have known to present it to the council's climate and nature advisory group instead of the full council.

The motion stated: "The environmental impact of single-use plastics poses a significant threat to our community's well-being, wildlife, and ecosystems.

"Plastics that end up in our oceans are having a catastrophic effect on marine life, sea birds and once degraded into micro plastics, contaminate the food chain including our own.

"The existing good work which has been done by our predecessor authorities to reduce the amount of single use plastics in use.

"Council recognises the importance of taking proactive measures to reduce plastic waste and promote sustainable practices."

This was followed by a number of requests but councillor Denise Rollo (Harrington, Labour), the portfolio holder for sustainable, resilient and connected places, said the proposal would already be included within a related council strategy.

Councillor Chris Southward (Denton Holme, Labour), the portfolio holder for digital connectivity and customer focus, said: "We are already doing most of this work."

Councillor Elaine Lynch (Wigton, Labour), the portfolio holder for lifelong learning and development, added: "What I would suggest is this goes to the climate and nature advisory group."

She said that the work was already taking place in both the former Allerdale and Copeland councils and that the advisory group could take the proposal on.

Councillor Barbara Cannon (St Michaels, Labour), the portfolio for financial planning and assets, said: "They could have gone there first."

And councillor Lisa Brown (Currock, Labour), the deputy leader and portfolio holder for adults and community health, agreed that the work was already going on and added: "There's a better place than the executive where people are more knowledgeable."

Members of the committee agreed that the motion should be sent to the climate and nature advisory group.

The motion's seven demands were:

  • To undertake an audit of single-use plastics used by the authority and seek to replace them with sustainable or reusable alternatives where practicable by the end of 2024;
  • To encourage staff and council members to adopt plastic-free practices in their daily activities;
  • To use its communications channels to raise public awareness about the dangers of single-use plastics;
  • collaborate with our public sector partners, local schools, business and community organisations to promote plastic-free practices;
  • recognise and celebrate businesses and individuals making significant efforts to reduce plastic usage;
  • to ask that the climate and nature advisory group be responsible for overseeing the implementation of the plastic-free initiative;
  • regularly assess and report on the progress of the plastic-free initiative to the council and community.