Jack Abbott on Reform UK scrapping climate commitments

It was a political stunt based in ideology, rather than reality. 

It is not lost on me or others that this decision was made in the very same week Ipswich suffered from major flash flooding, a terrible irony.

Whether Reform likes it or not, climate change is something our county is already contending with.  

From flooding to coastal erosion - and the impact that a changing environment is having on agriculture - our part of the world is under direct threat of climate change, and our communities are already dealing with the consequences. 

However, this political stunt will not just have environmental consequences for our county, it will have major economic costs too. 

Clean energy is one of the fastest-growing parts of our regional economy, creating thousands of jobs and attracting huge levels of investment.  

Earlier this year, Sizewell C marked a major milestone with 2,000 workers now onsite. Already the project is bringing huge returns for our town, with 300 of the 500 jobs I secured for Ipswich having already been delivered and £1 billion worth of contracts going to businesses in our local area.  

This is a powerful reminder that Sizewell C isn’t simply a project of national significance - it is already changing lives here in Ipswich and Suffolk. 

For towns like Ipswich, I am squarely focused on people getting real opportunities: secure, skilled, well-paid jobs that allow young people to build a future without having to leave the area they call home.   

It is evident that Reform do not like clean energy, but the reality is that clean energy is helping drive Suffolk’s economy forward.  

While Reform was busy making political gestures, residents in Ipswich were, once again, dealing with severe disruption and traffic chaos. 

Motorists were left stranded, our road network was subject to huge delays, and buses and emergency vehicles were diverted and put under real pressure.  

I have received reports of flooding in Alnesbourne Crescent, Fore Street, Holywells Road, Maidenhall Approach, Nacton Road, Ransomes Way, Rope Walk, Spring Road and Wherstead Road. There will almost certainly have been other roads and areas of Ipswich affected too. As this widespread impact demonstrates, this flooding was not ‘localised’ as Suffolk County Council referred to it. 

Following the flooding, I contacted both Suffolk County Council and Anglian Water as a matter of urgency to urge them to carry out review of the drainage infrastructure in affected areas, and to carry out the necessary repairs and upgrades. I am sure you will all be incredibly disappointed to hear that Suffolk County Council have refused to do so. I hope they reflect on that position, as clearly, we cannot suffer from a continuation of the Conservatives’ ‘do nothing’ approach. 

We have all seen the neglect of Ipswich’s highways infrastructure by Suffolk County Council over many years. To be clear, that responsibility does not lie at the feet of the new Reform administration, the Conservatives were in power from 2005 (I appreciate some readers will point out Reform’s Cabinet Member for Transport and Highways was a recent defection from the Conservatives, was their Deputy Leader and voted against the Northern Bypass). 

Since our Labour Government was elected, however, we have invested in road maintenance, including for the funding of drainage systems. Over the next four years, Suffolk County Council will receive a record £219 million. 

It is imperative that Reform uses this funding properly to maintain our drainage infrastructure and prepare for the challenges we increasingly face from extreme weather events.  

The new Reform administration at Suffolk County Council need to focus on protecting jobs, driving investment into our local economy, and preparing our communities for the future, not indulging in performative political stunts designed to generate headlines.  

If they don’t, people in Ipswich and Suffolk will suffer the consequences.