Protest planned at Corby Cube ahead of Reform motion to rescind climate emergency declaration

The protest has been sparked after North Northants Council (NNC) joined other Reform-run local authorities in rescinding their climate emergency declarations – NNC had been left as an outlier.

Protesters will gather at 5.30pm outside Corby Cube before the full council meeting at 6pm today (September 24).

Leader of the Green group on NNC, Cllr Emily Fedorowycz, said: “It is important if people wish to protest, it is an important freedom in this country and one that should always be respected.

“People have every right to stand up peacefully for what they believe in and to hold their elected representatives to account.”

Two Reform members, Cllr Leon Gibbs (Reform, Barton Seagrave and Burton Latimer) and Cllr Lee Duffy (Reform, Lloyds and Corby Village) have proposed to end North Northants Council’s declaration of a ‘climate and environment emergency’.

Cllr Fedorowycz said: “We know that concern about climate change remains high across the country.

“Recent polling consistently shows around three-quarters of people are concerned.”

A recent Ipsos poll shows that three out of four Britons are ‘concerned’ about climate change, putting the figure at 74 per cent.

She continued: “This is clearly an issue that matters to a significant portion of the population.

“The decision will be made by councillors when they vote but seeing local people take the time to turn up and express their views can demonstrate the strength of feeling within the community.”

In June this year, a full council meeting at Corby Cube was postponed due to extreme heat, with opposition Green members highlighting the irony to the delayed net-zero targets.

On July 28, 2021, NNC resolved to commit the council to achieving carbon neutrality by 2030, which was approved by the executive on December 22, 2022.

In September last year, the executive agreed to align the council’s carbon neutrality target with the UK statutory Net Zero target of 2050.

The motion states: “This council believes that protecting and enhancing our natural environment, reducing unnecessary energy consumption and making responsible use of public resources do not depend upon maintaining a declaration of emergency.

“Environmental and energy considerations should be addressed where they are material to a decision.

“The council should focus its resources on practical, achievable and measurable interventions which reduce energy consumption and waste, improve the efficiency and resilience of council assets, protect and enhance the natural environment and deliver value for money.”

Cllrs Gibbs and Duffy also propose to introduce environmental consideration assessments (ECAs) in place of the existing climate change impact assessment (CCIA) process to focus on environmental impacts without imposing ‘unnecessary administrative requirements’.