TUC Congress votes to support Zane’s Law

Motion 50 on Zane’s Law was moved by the FBU and seconded by the NEU.

In 2014, seven-year-old Zane Gbangbola died from hydrogen cyanide poisoning, when flood water passed through an historic landfill site, known to the authorities, carrying hydrogen cyanide into Zane’s home. The Truth About Zane campaign is fighting to address the crisis of contaminated land.

The motion outlined the demands of Zane’s Law, which include local authorities and the Environment Agency keeping regularly updated and publicly accessible registers of land that may be contaminated. Contaminated land must be inspected and remediation enforced, with the government providing funding for this, following the “polluter pays” principle: to recover costs where those responsible for the pollution can be identified.

Speaking in support of the motion for PCS, national executive member Mark Crawford said:

“Waste from historical industrial processes together with the increased instance of flooding, which will only get worse, makes far more thorough regulation absolutely vital. We need far more than regulation. We need far-reaching democratic accountability, but in the meantime, let’s make polluters pay.”

As well as representing members in Defra, PCS also represents members working in the Planning Inspectorate. Mark said: “Planning law should be one of the foundations of public safety. Planning has failed if people can’t be safe from being poisoned in their own homes.”

He pointed out that cuts to spending need to be reversed to provide the resources that will be needed nationally and locally. He said “The risk from contaminated land in the UK is very real. We need Zane’s Law, but crucially we also need the means to carry it out.”

The motion was carried unanimously.

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