Just Stop Oil supporters are slow-marching again in London this morning. They are demanding that the government halts all new licences and consents for oil, gas and coal projects in the UK. [1]
Starting at 7:59am, 60 supporters in 3 groups began marching in Kensal Rise, Hampstead, and Kensal Green. They were issued Section 12 Notices and were off the road by 9:00am. At 10:00am Just Stop Oil supporters began marches in Holborn, The Strand, and Oxford Street, causing disruption to the West End. Five were arrested for breaching Section 12 Notices that were placed in Holborn and Oxford Street. One of those arrested was Sue Parfitt, an 81-year-old vicar from Bristol.
Sophie Holland, 52, a speech therapist and mother-of-three from Bristol was one of those in the road today. She said:
“I am here for my three children. Their future is vanishing before my eyes with every week that our government does nothing to tackle the climate emergency. Stopping oil and gas licences is only the first step, and instead what we see is their criminal negligence with continued licensing and new deals for profit.”
“I am also here in solidarity with hundreds of thousands of mothers in Somalia who are watching their children die in one of the worst humanitarian crises the world has ever seen. These scenes of starvation will be replicated in the UK before the end of this century unless we see radical action.”
“I will not stay quiet while our children’s future is stolen. I know I will look back in five years and wish I had done more. It is life or death, and it is happening on our watch.”
Yesterday, US climate envoy John Kerry singled out Just Stop Oil as an example of the growing civil resistance movement, hailing “a 66-year-old gentleman going out in the middle of the Wimbledon court, and demonstrating, and willing to be arrested – there is civil disobedience growing in communities around the world.” [2]
Also in the road today was Matt Cooper, 48, a father-of-two from Bath. He said:
“Today at 1.2 degrees of global heating, the impacts of climate breakdown are everywhere and are becoming harder to ignore. We’re on course for my children to see nearly 3 degrees of heating in their lifetimes, and the implications of that are terrifying. Yet the UK government continues to issue licences for new oil and gas. Resisting this is the most important thing I can do.”
Just Stop Oil supporters have completed up to seven marches a day, six days a week since the 24th April. Over 800 ordinary people from all over the UK have taken part. Including arrests at the Coronation and cultural and sporting events there have been around 235 arrests this year.
Since the Just Stop Oil campaign launched on 14th February 2022, there have been over 2,200 arrests and 138 people have spent time in prison, many without trial. Just Stop Oil supporters Morgan Trowland and Marcus Decker are serving three-year prison sentences for resisting new oil, gas and coal in the longest sentences for peaceful climate action in British history.
It’s time to pick a side and join in civil resistance to end new oil, gas and coal. We are inviting everyone to come and march with us every day in London from the 16th-23rd July. Sign up for action at juststopoil.org.
ENDS
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Notes to Editors
[1] Just Stop Oil is a coalition of groups working together to demand that the government immediately halt all future licensing and consents for the exploration, development and production of fossil fuels in the UK. Just Stop Oil is a member of the A22 Network of civil resistance projects. Climate Emergency Fund is Just Stop Oil’s primary funder for recruitment, training, and capacity building.
Just Stop Oil ‘Blue Lights’ policy: our policy is, and has always been, to move out of the way for emergency vehicles with siren sounding and ‘blue lights’ on.[3] https://twitter.com/BBCPolitics/status/1678004325098962945
[2]https://twitter.com/BBCPolitics/status/1678004325098962945
