Activists from Extinction Rebellion’s Chesterfield and North East Derbyshire group slow-marched along Saltergate on Thursday with banners and drums. MORE: ‘Numerous’ reports of north Derbyshire pubs flouting lockdown rules The protest was part of a nationwide day of campaigning, called ‘Inaction = Death’, by Extinction Rebellion groups. In a statement, Chesterfield and North East Derbyshire Extinction Rebellion said: “The Government is failing in its commitments to reach net zero emissions by 2050, a woefully inadequate target. “It is more interested in propping up a toxic, exploitative system that harms ordinary people and the most vulnerable in society. “If we go above 1.5C warming, the science is terrifyingly clear: tens of millions of lives are at stake. "The Government is failing on Covid 19 – don’t let it fail on climate.” The group delivered a letter to Chesterfield MP Toby Perkins demanding ‘concentrated action in Parliament to stave off the environmental catastrophe’. In its annual report to Parliament this week, the Committee on Climate Change said ‘urgent steps must be taken in the months ahead to initiate a green, resilient COVID-19 recovery’. Lord Deben, the committee’s chair, said: “The UK is facing its biggest economic shock for a generation. Meanwhile, the global crisis of climate change is accelerating.” A Government spokesperson said: “We agree with the committee that tackling climate change should be at the heart of our economic recovery. “We were the first major economy to commit to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and want to ensure that the UK has the most ambitious environmental programme of any country on earth. “Our emissions have already fallen by 43 per cent since 1990, and we are investing to deliver more offshore wind power than any other country and reduce emissions from homes and industry. “We believe that the actions we need to take to achieve our zero emissions target can help to deliver a stronger, cleaner, more sustainable and more resilient economy after this pandemic – and already there are over 460,000 UK jobs in low-carbon businesses and their supply chains.” MORE: Staveley deputy headteacher to retire from school which has been part of his life since 1973 A message from the editor Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you. In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper. Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis. With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper. Thank you Nancy Fielder, editor