Is it Time to Assemble in Dartington?
A community assembly is being held in Dartington at the end of January to ask local people what would make the village a better place.
The organisers are Time to Assemble, which springs from climate activist groups Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil.
Co-founder Roger Hallam was sentenced to five years in prison for helping organise the M25 protest – he served a year and is still wearing an ankle tag. The Assemble movement began in 2024 and aims to “rewire politics”. It says democracy is our of date and has called for the abolition of the House of Lords. It wants instead a Citizens Assembly to put ordinary people at the centre of political discussions.
This House of the People had its first gathering in London last year. The House is a separate project to the central work of Assemble — which involves giving local people a voice in national politics.
The Dartington meeting at the village hall on January 31st , run jointly with the parish council, will be followed by one at Follaton Community Hall on February 8th and another at Hope Close of February 22. There will then be a larger gathering in the Civic Hall on March 7 with a fund raising gig that evening.
The publicity flyer says “These meet ups are super friendly…and it could be the start of big things.”
It is planned that in October there will be a rally outside Parliament to demand that the Government trust people by using local and national Citizens’ Assemblies.