The West of England Combined Authority committee today (28 January 22) met to vote through measures to tackle the cost of living crisis, support people hardest hit by Covid and tackle the climate emergency.
A new £5 million fund will target sectors worst hit by covid including tourism, hospitality, arts and entertainment. This will see yet more support for creative freelancers. Metro Mayor Dan Norris has consistently backed self-employed freelancers as many have been hit particularly hard because Government covid support schemes missed them out.
The committee agreed that retrofitting should be a key part of the £50 million Green Recovery Fund and then moved on to vote through a recommendation to cap bus fares to tackle the cost of living crisis.
Dan Norris said: “This was a set of mesaures to tackle the real challenges of our time. Going greener is something I beleive passionately about and will always be a focus for me. Today we agreed that retrofitting is vital to meet our ambitious net zero targets and tackle the cost of living crisis when people’s energy bills are rocketing. I also want to ensure there is support for people who have been badly hit by covid. That includes many in our brilliant creative sector which we need to back to ensure they survive and then thrive.
“My very first decsion as mayor was to increase support by £1 million for West of England people working in those sectors – and I am making an ongoing committment that the arts, culture and heritage matter. It’s something that makes me proud of the West of England and so people working in these areas need our support. This is substantial cash, going into important projects so together we can make our region greener, fairer and the best it can be.”
STEPS TO A GREENER, FAIRER WEST OF ENGLAND
