Families “at a complete loss” after council rejects toxic‑land proposal
North Northants council declines support for contaminated land legislation
Families campaigning for greater transparency around contaminated land say they have been left shocked and disheartened after North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) became the first authority in the country to reject support for Zane’s Law.
The motion, brought by Green councillor Ben Williams at a meeting in the Corby Cube on Thursday 5 March, asked the authority to back the principles of the Clean Land (Human Rights) Bill, known as Zane’s Law.
The bill is named after seven‑year‑old Zane Gbangbola, who died in 2014 from what was recorded as suspected hydrogen cyanide exposure when floodwater entered his family home via a historic landfill site.
Corby resident, Andy Hinde, whose son Fraser developed leukaemia as a baby, believes historic steelworks waste in the town may have been a factor in his illness. Following the council’s decision, he said he was “shocked”.
He said: “The only party to stand up against it was Reform. That tells you something. We have met with Mike Griffiths, the leader of the council, numerous times. He stated to us that he is going to be open and transparent around contaminated land in Corby. This was the first chance of them actually being open and honest. And they failed.”
Hinde said families who have long raised concerns about pollution in the area were now questioning whether their voices were being heard.
“It is quite clear that the council are not listening to their constituents.''
''They need to remember that we are the people that put them in those places. If they are not listening to us, then there needs to be a change immediately.”
He added that the decision was particularly painful given Corby’s history.
He said: “Corby is renowned as Toxic Town. This could have been the opportunity to stand up and say, right, we are going to look at this and we are going to rectify. They have not done this. They are not interested in it.”
Green councillor Ben Williams, who proposed the motion, said the outcome had left many families feeling defeated.
He said: “The whole thing is just really disappointing. This is the first council in the entire country that has voted down a motion on the principles of Zane’s Law. Corby, North Northamptonshire and Corby have a long history of toxic waste pollution in the area.
''A lot of the Corby families in particular are now honestly just at a complete loss.”
Williams said the motion had simply asked the council to write a letter to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Environment expressing support for the bill’s principles.
He said: “This really would have cost the council nothing to do. It has been voted down for seemingly quite silly reasons. It feels like a massive kick in the teeth really, especially given that this motion was really just the council affirming their position on quite a big topic.”
He added that campaigners would continue working with concerned residents despite the setback.
He said: “There are still many families in North Northamptonshire that are very interested in the topic and particularly concerned about it. I will continue working with those various other campaign groups and bring forward their concerns.”
The authority, which is run by Reform UK, said it was unable to back the motion because the legislation was still ''being developed'' and had not yet been introduced in Parliament.
Speaking at the meeting, Reform councillor Chris Munday said he had “considerable sympathy with the intent behind this motion” but could not support it in its current form.
He said: “We are being asked to endorse the principles of legislation where the final content is not yet confirmed.
''When we write to government in the name of this authority, we must be clear about precisely what it is we are supporting.''
At present, the motion asks us to support what is effectively a moving target. That is not good decision making or good governance.”
Cllr Munday added that the motion did not specify what local gaps it was intended to address or what the operational or financial implications might be.
He explained: “This is not opposition to the objective of protecting public health or improving oversight of contaminated land. It is simply that I am not prepared to endorse unspecified future legislation on behalf of this council.”
Families campaigning for Zane’s Law say they will now take their case to other councils across the country as they continue calling for stronger protections and accountability on contaminated land.