WITH Dorset Council declaring a climate emergency just over one year ago, Shaftesbury activists are urging the authority to respond with the same speed and urgency as it has to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On Saturday members of Extinction Rebellion (XR) Shaftesbury flocked to Gold Hill as part of a national silent protest - calling for the Government to form a citizens’ assembly, prioritise the planet over profit, and prevent life returning to how it used to be before Covid-19.

The strike action, which took place all over the country, followed social distancing measures as protestors were made to stand three metres apart and wear masks.

XR Shaftesbury also used the strike action to challenge the speed that the county council responded to the coronavirus outbreak, describing attention to the climate emergency as “worrying” in comparison.

The group said: “As we have recently seen, Dorset Council was able to act in a matter of days in response to a crisis threatening the health and wellbeing of our communities.

“Why then, with a crisis of such enormous magnitude and consequently much greater risk to people, have they done so little in relation to the climate emergency they declared over a year ago?”

Richard Ecclestone, an XR Shaftesbury coordinator, added: “Dorset Council’s woeful inaction in producing a climate and ecological action plan is worrying.

“Whilst we understand and appreciate that Covid-19 has presented some unexpected challenges for the council we know the climate emergency has the potential to present similar, if not bigger problems.”

The protest group praised Shaftesbury for work that has been done at a local level since the climate emergency was declared on May 16 last year, including working towards a cycle route, plastic-free areas, a town tree plan and enhancement of open spaces.

XR Shaftesbury member Beth Lewis said: “The Government is now concerned with getting us back to ‘normal’, and yet the coronavirus has shown us what’s possible when the political will is there.

“There might not be a clear way out of either of these two huge disasters, but we know one thing for sure: we can do better.

“We can take this as an opportunity to move forward to a more positive, cleaner, greener future. Not going back to the way things were.”

  • This story is part of the Journal's new publication, the Vale Journal, which covers Shaftesbury, Gillingham, and the wider Blackmore Vale. Got a story for us? Email editor@valejournal.co.uk or find us on Facebook.