Colchester cabinet member claims 5G masts ‘fry reproductive organs’ of young people

Andrea Luxford-Vaughan, who is Colchester Council’s cabinet member for planning, environment, and sustainability, was responding Ian Drew, who spoke during the ‘Have Your Say’ section at the beginning of a cabinet meeting on Tuesday night.

Speaking on behalf of the Essex Residents’ Association, Mr Drew claimed in a five-minute speech that 5G masts were part of a nationwide plan to “cover the country and ultimately install the internet of things”.

He said: “5G is a blight on our countryside and a huge danger to humanity.

“It’s been clear in the last few years, since the introduction of Covid, that all of these current issues have been on the government agenda for many years.

“With the introduction of 5G, more people are beginning to join up the dots.

“The lockdowns of 2020 were used as a great cover to speed up the creation infrastructure necessary to cover the country and ultimately install the internet of things.”

To the surprise of many at the meeting, Mrs Luxford-Vaughan responded by saying she was “deeply sympathetic”, adding research had shown 5G masts “fry young people’s internal organs”.

She said: “I’m very sympathetic because, locally, and anywhere near a school where one of my children attends, I campaigned very strongly against these – the reason for that is because there is no evidence that they don’t cause harm.

“People much cleverer than me, physicists, have done research that shows actually, especially in young people, it fries their internal organs including their reproductive organs.

“There’s no proof, because they haven’t been doing it long enough, but I’m deeply sympathetic.”

She continued: “At the moment, rarely do [5G masts] need planning permission.

“There’s only so much we can do.

“I’ve talked to officers and they’ve gone ‘actually, we can’t stop this happening [because] it’s community development’ – that’s where we come a cropper.

“I’m probably speaking to the converted [but] it has to go higher – you have to campaign with Government.”

5G networks rely on signals carried by radio waves – part of the electromagnetic spectrum – transmitted between an antenna or mast and your phone.

The World Health Organisation says “to date, and after much research performed, no adverse health effect has been causally linked with exposure to wireless technologies.”

It says exposure from 5G infrastructures at around 3.5 GHz is similar to that from existing mobile phone base stations. 

‘Views expressed are not supported by the council in any way’

When the Gazette put to Ms Luxford-Vaughan her quotes from Tuesday’s meeting, she distanced herself from the remarks about radiation frying people’s internal organs.

She told the Gazette: “The jury is out on the science.

“There are qualified people that have mapped the radiation from telecommunications towers and believe it is possible that within a certain range there could be health implications to humans and wildlife, but it’s too early to determine what any long-term effects might be.

“The communications companies have a different view.

“We as an authority are bound by planning legislation that is set by government on permitted development for radio mast.”

Ms Luxford-Vaughan added she did not support other theories discussed by Mr Drew on Tuesday evening.

She said: “I don’t agree with his other conspiracy theories about big brother and all that kind of stuff.”

Leader of the council, David King, reiterated the council is not opposed to 5G in any way.

He said: “We engage with the public, whatever their views, but those expressed are not supported by the council in any way.

“We are not opposed to 5G and we don’t want residents to be concerned.

“We do not accept the conspiracy theory and regret any misunderstanding.”