Corby MP makes fresh call to council to publish plan for contaminated ‘toxic town’ land as community ‘demands answers’
MP for Corby Lee Barron has made a fresh call to North Northants Council to publish a plan to investigate and clean up any contaminated land affected by toxic waste from the town’s steelworks.
Last week North Northamptonshire Council’s Reform UK leader Cllr Martin Griffiths challenged Mr Barron to take his ‘longstanding calls’ for a public inquiry directly to the Government.
Cllr Griffiths pledged his administration’s ‘full support’ for an ‘independent statutory investigation’ into Corby’s historic contamination – but Mr Barron wants action to be taken by the unitary authority.
The ongoing war of words between the council leader and the MP follows the publication of new environmental research by Earthwatch highlighting potential risks to public health from toxic dumps.
Mr Barron said: “I have repeatedly said that if families and communities do not get answers then I will call for a public inquiry on their behalf. North Northants Council is the responsible body to provide those answers. A report has been published, and the council now need to respond to it. I find it baffling for a council to ask for a public inquiry into itself.”
The recently published report from Earthwatch revealed there are hotspots of metal pollution around the former steelworks site and in some areas at levels that could cause an impact to human health if subject to long term exposure.
It has been presented to the council which, along with the Environment Agency, is the responsible body.
This prompted the MP to make fresh calls to the council to immediately publish a plan to investigate and clean up any contaminated land.
He said: “It is vital the authority must take responsibility for an urgent clean-up of any contaminated land. That is the immediate issue and attempting to deflect to an enquiry doesn't deal with the responsibility the Council has.
“It is important that North Northamptonshire Council investigate the report, not deflect it to the MP who stood by local communities whilst the council leadership buried their heads in the sand. People deserve answers and it is the role of the council to provide them.”
In 2009, the High Court found serious negligence in the handling of contaminated materials during the reclamation of the former Corby steelworks. The clean-up took place before North Northamptonshire Council was established in 2021.