Green Hero - Ruth Brown
PPC for North East Hertforshire
Local Green Champion
Ruth Brown is the green champion who has been selected to represent the constituency of North East Hertfordshire. She has lived in Royston for over 30 years and has been an actively involved local community campaigner there. Ruth's dedication can be demonstrated through the many roles she has committed herself to. She is a Royston Town Councillor and a councillor representing the Royston Heath ward on the North Hertfordshire District Council. She was Deputy Leader of the North Herts DC from December 2021-May 2024, now she is the leader of the opposition and Shadow for Planning and Transport - a role well suited to an environmental campaigner.
With such a variety of positions, Ruth has been able to implement tangible and impactful environmental change, but don't just take our word for it, here are some of the countless achievements of Ruth and the North Hertfordshire council that show her community spirit and passion for helping the environment and the work of the Council's which she has supported and helped to oversee as the Deputy Leader.
Active travel & sustainable transport:
Ruth is the 20 is Plenty Champion for Royston and proposed the motion passed by Royston Town Council in March 2022 to call on Hertfordshire County Council to change their speed management policy.
Secondly, Ruth has been involved in improvements to cycling & walking infrastructure and held the position of Cabinet Member for Transport on the North Hertfordshire Council when the new LCWIP (Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans) were adopted in Sept 2023.
In addition to improvements in active travel, she has been campaigning for increased bus services, her hope is that most of these will be electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles where possible. For Ruth, it is vital that these bus services will be increased in rural areas, utilising Demand Response Transport and subsidy where needed - and actively promoting Hertfordshire County Council's Lynx Demand Response Transport. Ruth's ambitions include the installation of motability hubs to ease interchange between walking, cycling, bus and train services, promoting active and public transport above car usage where possible.
Car usage is still necessary today, but Ruth and her fellow councillors have worked to minimise the negative environmental impact they have by installing more on and off-street EV charging points in the area. They have also been advocating the implementation of car share clubs to reduce the number of cars on the road where possible.
Recycling & Waste:
The Liberal Democrats continuously rank the highest for top councils in the country for recycling and sustainable waste management, and the work Ruth has supported and her campaigning reflects the passion we have for recycling!
Due to Ruth's campaign, Royston became the first town in North Hertfordshire to install dual recycling bins in town centres. In addition to this, North Hertfordshire is part of a pilot government scheme to introduce kerbside collection of soft plastics, in her time on the council, which she has supported. Due to the success of this scheme, it is now being rolled out more widely across the country.
Better recycling facilities are always desirable, however, reducing the creation of this waste in the first place is always the most sensible solution. They have reduced waste through the promotion of less packaging, reducing single-use plastics and making sure plastics are more often reused before they are recycled. The council will adopt the discount bottle return schemes when the central government allow for it- a scheme which the Liberal Democrats wish to roll-out nationwide (as announced in their 2024 manifesto).
Furthermore, the Lib Dems on the North Herts Council proposed the motion in 2019 to end the usage of any single-use plastics in all Council operations- the motion passed! Ruth also introduced a reusable plastic cup scheme at Royston May Fayre in 2023.
As well as reducing plastic and packaging waste, they have been advocating for the resale and reuse of clothing and household goods, whether this is through supporting charity shops or supporting local repair cafes. Ruth used to manage an Oxfam shop and so has always endorsed charity shops and a circular life-cycle for clothing!
In North Herts, they also save food from going to waste by having a food provision network which works alongside the community to distribute food which supermarkets can't sell. They also have supported Best Before shops which give food a second chance at being eaten before going to the bin. Education and awareness is also a large part of food waste management and prevention for North Herts council (particularly the waste team) who make sure they always promote buying less and using up leftovers.
Sustainable development
The progression towards to low-carbon housing and developments is one of the most important steps in the transition towards net zero. In Ruth's time on the council, she has been helping to push for the adoption of the Sustainability Supplementary Planning Document which would make it a requirement that all new buildings would be built with solar panels as well as ending the usage of gas in domestic dwellings. The document would ensure a future conscious planning design, and oppose policy which is still allowing for outtdated, carbon intensive gas boilers. Furthermore, they are seeking to raise minimum standards of building design to ensure energy efficiency as well as making sure sustainable development includes the enhancement of biodiversity and the improvement of green spaces for local amenity.
In the local area, Ruth has been promoting the concept of a district heating network for larger sustainable developments - however this hasn't left the planning stage as of yet. Ruth and her colleagues will be working hard to make sure it is. The council does have a Design Review Panel now and will be aiming to adopt a Design Code SPD as soon as possible.
Making Change Happen
Ruth Brown is a key member of our Green Liberal Democrats team which can,
together, make environmental change happen in Parliament, so we'll be doing all we can to help get her elected. Will you join us?
For more Green Heroes go to the Green Heroes front page here >>> https://greenlibdems.org.uk/en/page/green-heroes