Warwick District Council considers tax rise for climate change fund

The proposal would see council tax rise by about £2 a week in an H Band property

Residents in Warwickshire may be asked to vote on whether they would spend about £1 a week on a fund to tackle climate change and "disasters".

Warwick District Council wants to prepare for issues such as flooding and make the area carbon-neutral by 2030.

It is to discuss holding a referendum on 7 May to ask residents if they will accept council tax rises for the plans.

"We believe that the time has now come to take practical action to deal with the climate emergency," it said.

The plan would put £3m into a "ring-fenced" Climate Action Fund.

Climate emergency

People in average Band D properties would see a rise of £52 a year and in H band it would be £104.

Like dozens of towns and cities across the UK, the Conservative-run authority has declared a climate emergency.

There is no single definition of what that means but many areas say they want to be carbon-neutral by 2030.

The district includes Warwick, Leamington Spa and Kenilworth.

Its "Climate Emergency Programme" aims for the council itself to be carbon-neutral by 2025.

A cross-party statement released after a meeting earlier said the plans would reduce road congestion, improve air quality and make homes and buildings more energy efficient.

Councillors will discuss holding a referendum over the proposed council tax rise on 26 February.