Climate emergency formally declared across West Yorkshire

The announcement was made at the authority's annual meeting on Thursday, where local councils pledged to work together to reduce carbon emissions.

Over 150 people in the region will attend workshops over the next few weeks, looking at how to tackle climate change in the building, energy, transport and industry sectors.

The announcement follows a delay to the clean air zone in Leeds, set to come into force in January 2020, which has now been postponed by Leeds City Council. It is now unknown when it will be introduced.

The West Yorkshire Combined Authority are working with Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (the LEP) to find other ways of reducing carbon emissions in the region's cities.

This includes improving the energy efficiency of homes, introducing electric vehicle charging points and low emission buses and helping businesses reduce their waste, water and energy bills.

Coun Susan Hinchcliffe, chair of the Combined Authority and leader of Bradford Council, said: “We set out our ambition to become the UK’s first zero carbon city region last year and we have a number of programmes in place to decarbonise our economy but it’s vital that we all work together to make our ambition a reality.

“We’ve long recognised there is a climate emergency which is why balancing economic growth with social inclusion and environmental resilience has been a priority for us for many years. We are already taking action to address this including working with climate change experts and our partners in business and academia.

“Tackling climate change will benefit everyone. Warmer, more efficient homes and greener transport means lower energy bills, cleaner air and better health.”

-> Leeds Council declare climate emergency in the cityWhat does the combined authority do?

Combined authorities allow a group of local councils to come together to improve transport links and the economy in their region.

The West Yorkshire Combined Authority was set up in 2014. It works with the local councils - Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield - to invest in better housing, transport and business.