Glastonbury’s 5G Precautionary Principle Faces a New Test
September 2026
Glastonbury’s pioneering 5G precautionary approach is back in the spotlight. A new proposal for a 22.85-metre 4G/5G mast at Thomas Way Industrial Estate has prompted residents to ask the Council to put its previous precautionary commitments into practice.
The application is now being considered, with public comments invited until 23 September 2026. Dr Tess Lawrie reports on the latest developments and the issues raised by residents.
Dr Tess Lawrie reports on the latest developments and the issues raised by residents
Glastonbury Council – 5G Report
May 2022
Glastonbury Town Council’s 5G Advisory Committee
Following six months of investigation, Glastonbury Town Council resolved unanimously to adopt the recommendations of its 5G Advisory Committee, established in 2019 to examine concerns about the safety of fifth-generation (5G) cellular network technology and its rollout.
The committee held 13 meetings between September 2019 and March 2020 and considered a substantial body of published material, as well as presentations from academics, health professionals, industry representatives and members of the public. Its final report was published in April 2020.
The recommendations
Glastonbury Town Council adopted the committee’s recommendations, which called for:
- An inquiry by Parliament — writing to identified MPs asking them to establish a Select Committee or Committee Inquiry into the safety or otherwise of fifth-generation cellular network technology, building upon the work undertaken by the Glastonbury 5G Advisory Committee;
- Independent scientific research into non-thermal effects — writing to Public Health England and the UK Government asking them to convene an independent scientific study into the non-thermal effects of 5G, particularly the potential effects of high-frequency, long-duration exposure on reactive oxygen species and antioxidant biomarkers in human subjects;
- Research into Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity (EHS) — asking Public Health England to commission research into EHS;
- Review of ICNIRP guidelines — lobbying the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) to take non-thermal effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) into account in its guidelines on limiting exposure to electromagnetic fields.
These recommendations reflect the committee’s precautionary approach and its view that areas of scientific uncertainty warranted further investigation.
The full report
The Report and Recommendations from Glastonbury Town Council’s 5G Advisory Committee, published in April 2020, runs to 115 pages and includes the committee’s report and conclusions, its recommendations, a bibliography of the evidence considered, supporting documents from presentations, and minutes of its meetings.
A copy of the committee’s report was also submitted as written evidence to the UK Parliament’s inquiry into Broadband and the road to 5G, where it remains publicly available. https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/1607/html/
Why this matters
Glastonbury Town Council’s decision was significant because it called for questions about the potential health effects of 5G to be addressed through further independent research and scrutiny. The committee’s report acknowledges the contested nature of the evidence and records arguments presented both in support of, and against, concerns regarding the potential health effects of wireless technology.
The recommendations therefore remain an important record of a local authority calling for greater scrutiny, independent research and public accountability in relation to emerging wireless technology, and for reported health risks to be properly investigated rather than assumed to be resolved.