Housebuilders developing council-owned land across Barrow should be legally forced to make any new homes super green, councillors have said.

Builders should be required to fit electric car charging points and solar panels, among other eco-friendly measures, if they develop council-owned land, a meeting was told.

Too often, homes are built to the minimum eco-standard, said councillors on its executive committee.

The demand has been made after Barrow Borough Council recently voted unanimously to declare a climate emergency.

The council is drawing-up plans to set out how the authority and the community can do more to help the environment and cut C02 emissions.

Councillor Les Hall, a Conservative councillor representing Newbarns, told the meeting: “We as a council have unanimously agreed that a climate emergency is the way forward for us.

“If we are selling land, we should try and legally impose on the developer that they build to the best standard with better energy efficiency, not just the minimum standard.”

Labour Ormsgill councillor Beverley Morgan agreed and said other councils were further ahead in imposing rules that housing should be built to a higher spec of eco measures.

Coun Martin McLeavy, the Conservative member for Roosecote, said: “What we should be asking or imposing is that every new house built has a charging point for cars and solar panels on the roof.”

The meeting heard that the council could apply conditions on planning applications to make developers follow its climate change policies.

But Coun Lee Roberts, who is part of the council’s newly-formed climate change working group, warned that it had to be careful of scaring off buyers.

“What we’ve got to do is make sure it does not compromise our ability to sell the land,” said Coun Roberts, the Labour member for Parkside.

A report on what the council plans to do to tackle climate change is expected later this year.