Newquay Town Council criticises Cornwall Council in letter to cabinet over weed treatment

Newquay Town Council has criticised Cornwall Council over the timeframe given to town and parish councils to respond to proposals to reintroduce glyphosate for weed control.

The move follows a letter sent by Cornwall Council on 30 March, informing local councils that the chemical would be used again in Newquay and across Cornwall.

In its correspondence, Cornwall Council said the decision followed “declining standards” since routine weed management stopped in 2013. It said this had led to increased complaints, narrowing footways, damaged surfaces and a perceived drop in community pride.

The authority said its default position would be for all areas it maintains to be included, with a diluted glyphosate mix used on adopted highways in urban areas.

Town and parish councils were given the option to opt out of the programme by Monday this week.

In a letter to cabinet member Dan Rogerson, Newquay Town Council described the timescale as “tokenistic and poorly thought through at best”.

The letter said: “This letter, giving local councils an imposed timescale from 30 March until 20 April (and over the Easter period) to respond to the proposed new programme and the ‘opportunity’ to opt out of a chemical weed treatment plan with insufficient time to formulate a credible plan.”

It added that if Cornwall Council was “serious about this issue”, it would allow more time for councils to consider alternative approaches, including potential collaboration between towns to explore non-chemical methods of weed control.

The letter continued: “The Cornwall Council letter has however highlighted that the unitary authority is still treating local councils with contempt and provides the sector with options that are simply not workable in the imposed timescales.”

Councillors on Newquay Town Council’s Environment and Facilities Committee voted to send the letter during an extraordinary meeting last week.

At the meeting, Newquay mayor and Cornwall councillor Drew Creek spoke against the use of glyphosate and said he had tabled a motion at a forthcoming Cornwall Council meeting calling for a pause to allow more time for consideration.

Councillor Creek said he had also spoken to other town councils across Cornwall who shared similar concerns, and suggested working together to explore alternative weed management methods.

Newquay Town Council also argued that the opt‑out process was effectively unworkable because town and parish councils had already set their budgets for 2026/27, leaving no scope to fund alternative weed‑management methods. The letter further claimed that Cornwall Council’s approach conflicted with its own Climate Emergency and Ecological Emergency declarations, as well as the Local Nature Recovery Strategy. It asked for clarity on whether the proposed weed‑treatment programme would be funded only for an initial three‑year “recovery” period or on a longer‑term basis, which the council said would be essential if towns were to invest in non‑chemical alternatives.

Cornwall Council said its proposal would not amount to a return to widespread spraying.

It said a diluted glyphosate mix, approved for use on public highways, would be applied using controlled droplet application, and only in urban areas where weeds are present.

The authority added that it would not treat areas that are weed-free or those already managed under existing contracts, and that overall use of glyphosate would be significantly lower than levels seen before 2013.

Cornwall Council stopped general highway weed treatment in 2013 as a cost-saving measure, and by 2016 had ended the use of glyphosate on most public-access land it manages, except in limited circumstances such as controlling invasive species.

Town and parish councils can opt out of the programme if they can demonstrate they can maintain standards at least equivalent to those proposed by Cornwall Council.

Funding would be offered at a rate of £343.45 per kilometre, although councils would need to meet any additional costs.

Radio Newquay has approached Cornwall Council for a response to the concerns raised by Newquay Town Council.