News UK May 2007

==== May 26 - 31 ====
* May 30 - Opening day of Public Inquiry into proposed expansion of Stansted, Stop Stansted Expansion / News East of England, Aviation
*Portsmouth's virtual blanket 20mph safety limit on residential streets starts to take effect on June 1. Portsmouth City Council, May 30 / Road Safety, News South East England
*Step forward on reducing climate change impacts from products - Carbon Trust and Defra join with BSI British Standards to develop a standard method for measuring the embodied greenhouse gases emissions in products and services, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, May 30 / Climate change UK news
*Community cohesion policy must tackle poverty, Policy Studies Institute, May 29 / Social cohesion
* Sustainable Communities Bill completes Committee stage. Local Works, May 29 / Local needs met locally, UK news
==== May 19 - 25 ====
*Waste strategy published, DEFRA, May 24 / Reduce, reuse, repair & recycle UK news, Consultations
*Unions and voluntary organisations join to call for new Community Day bank holiday, National Council for Voluntary Organisations, May 24 / Community & voluntary action
*Energy White Paper published, DTI, May 23 / Sustainable energy news UK, Consultations
*Draft Bill to improve public transport and tackle congestion, Department for Transport, May 22 / Reduced dependence on cars UK news, Consultations
*Planning White Paper published, Communities and Local Government, May 21 / Consultations, Spatial planning UK news, Spatial planning UK comment
* Legal Ruling on Critical Mass Cycle Ride - Cyclist applies to take case to the Lords, Friends of the Earth, May 21 / Cycling UK
*Building Houses or Creating Communities? - Rush to meet housing targets has come at the expense of residents and the environment, SDC, Sustainable Development Commission, May 20 / Government's continuing commitment to build sustainable communities, Communities and Local Government / Spatial planning news UK and comment
==== May 12 - 18 ====
*Natural England says "Walk this ‘Cotswold’ way", Natural England, May 18 / News South West England, Walking 
*Social flowering in Chelsea - transforming urban green spaces, Natural England, May 18 / Urban focus UK, Biodiversity UK news
*Councils urged to reap the benefits of handing assets to communities, Communities and Local Government, May 15 / Community involvement UK news
* Women demand more action on climate change, WEN, May 15 / Women’s Environmental Network, Climate change UK news
*Go Green to beat the blues - Mind launches new green agenda for mental health, Mind, May 13 / Health
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*Defra conducts "deliberative public engagement" exercise on climate change. The event is described by Defra, (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) as involving "a representative sample of 150 people... recruited from six locations around the country (London, Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester, Newcastle and Nottingham)." Prior to the event, described by Defra as a "summit", "...participants took part in regional workshops where they discussed issues around climate change." Defra, May 12 / Climate change UK news
==== May 1 - 11 ====
*SNP and Greens publish Co-operation Agreement. The agreement includes a commitment to tackling climate change and opposing the building of new nuclear power stations, Scottish Green Party, May 11/ Scotland, Sustainable energy news UK
*Independent committee to be set up to advise on evaluation of UK aid. DFID, May 9 / Global connections UK
*Business in the Community launches consultation on the climate change questions of its leading corporate benchmark, the Environment Index, Business in the Community, May 8 / Climate change UK news, Towards Sustainable Economies
*Business in the Community’s Environment Index 2006 shows nearly 80% of companies choosing to publicly report their performance on climate change, Business in the Community, May 6 / Climate change UK news, Towards Sustainable Economies
*Over a 1,000 businesses commit to act on Climate change, Business in the Community, May 2 / Climate change UK news, Towards Sustainable Economies
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