Anti-fossil fuel activists vowed to keep blocking oil terminals till they are imprisoned. They have already made close to 1,000 arrests.
Ministers have two choices: they can either imprison and arrest Just Stop Oil supporters or agree not to import any new oil and/or gas. Just Stop Oil made this statement on Tuesday morning. The disruption will not stop even though Just Stop Oil supporters are free to move about as they please.
After their campaign began on 1 April, fuel-blockade activists took their first day off in 12 straight days on Tuesday. A campaign spokesperson stated that we decided to give them a break. According to the campaign, about 400 people have been detained a total of 990 times for taking action.
Monday saw the arrest of 40 people at Inter Terminals in Grays (Essex), some after they spent more than 38 hours trapped above the loading bay. Just Stop Oil reported that between 15 and 20 people had been digging tunnels under the Kingsbury oil terminal access roads.
After the prime minister’s spokesperson condemned protesters guerrilla tactics, the home secretary complained that people across country were using the campaigns statement. [were]Their lives were brought to a halt.
After he claimed that millions couldn’t get fuel due to the protests, Labours Steve Reed, the shadow minister of justice, was accused by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy of irresponsible fearmongering.
Just Stop Oil protests at some oil terminals have caused short-term disruptions in fuel deliveries over the last few days. A spokesperson for BEIS stated that the police are working with the police to remove protesters from these sites so that normal deliveries can resume.
We are working closely to ensure that supplies are not interrupted. The public should continue to buy fuel as usual.
Disruption continued in other places. After 60 activists from Extinction Rebellion blocked access to the headquarters of the Lloyds Insurance Market in London, Tuesday saw the Lloyds stop trading and workers were prevented from entering.
Over 25 entrances were blocked by superglue, chains, and bike locks. Staff who were already inside were allowed out. Climbers also scaled the exterior of the iconic building, dropping two banners that said End Fossil fuels Now and Insure Climate Justice.
XR had asked supporters to take a week off from work and join the mass actions in London this week. After a weekend of protests blocking the West End and two bridges across the Thames, the plan was to hold outreach activities on Monday and Tuesday. Members were asked door-to-door to speak to people about the government’s inaction regarding the climate crisis.
Outreach activities were part the XRs 3.5% Project, which mobilized members of local XR groups in their communities to spread the message of the group. Over 70 local groups took part in the outreach activities since January. We have had almost 4,000 conversations at the doorstep, and more than 80% have signed up for XR, XR stated.
XR members have privately admitted that canvassing has been difficult. There were thousands of flyers distributed in some areas of the country, but only a few people attended in-person meetings. Others claim that these activities have helped to generate a greater than expected amount of support for the weekend protest actions.
According to XR, mass actions will resume on Wednesday. Supporters are asked to gather at Hyde Park starting at 10 a.m.
More than 80 scientists signed a petition to Greg Hands, energy minister, in which they supported the call of a hunger striker for a briefing on climate change for all MPs from Sir Patrick Vallance (the governments chief scientist).
Angus Rose began his 30th day of starvation without food. The scientists, including Sir David King, former chief scientific advisor, Prof Julia Steinberger, author on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Prof Susan Michie, a member the governments Sage advisory body, stated that they all support the idea for the briefing, even though they were not all in agreement with Roses methods.
The crisis is changing rapidly and it is becoming more difficult for politicians to grasp the significance of the most recent science.