SHAFTESBURY Town Council is to vote on whether or not to declare a climate emergency for Shaftesbury at its meeting on 23 July. So that's a date for your dairy if you want to turn up to support it, as you're entitled and allowed.

The motion to declare the emergency has been proposed by new town councillor Alex Chase, who's a Conservative, and seconded by the council's new mayor Tim Cook, a LibDem.

The motion should have gone to the council meeting on 18 June - the first full council meeting of the new council in this municipal year - but town clerk Claire Commons deemed it had not been submitted in time.

Alex Chase has said his motion is a declaration of principle at this stage - much as the motion adopted by the new Dorset Council in May - and so it's unlikely the council will decide on specific followup actions on 23 July.

But a key question for anyone concerned about this issue is to ensure that climate emergency measures are included in the council's emerging neighbourhood plan that is due to go out to public consultation for the first time the week before, on 15 July.

If they are not - and it remains to be seen at the time of writing that this is so - there has to be a question mark over the value of the plan in the first place.

Plenty to look forward to then. Watch this space...