Just Stop Oil protesters have attempted to climb the gates of Downing Street on their 32nd day of action calling on the Government to halt all new oil and gas licences.
At 11.20am on Tuesday, 22 protesters arrived in Whitehall with one group blocking the busy central London route by sitting in the road, with some gluing themselves to the Tarmac, while others tried to climb the gates to Downing Street.
A video posted on the group’s Twitter account showed several protesters in their distinctive orange reflective waistcoats jumping over a smaller gate in an attempt to climb the main entrance to the street where the Prime Minister lives and works.
Officers shouted “make way” and “come back please” as armed police prevented some protesters from jumping over the smaller gate, and removed a woman who was climbing up the main gate.
Activists were dragged by officers towards police vans as members of the public filmed and watched.
The Metropolitan Police Events Twitter account said officers were aware of the protesters in Whitehall and Downing Street and that they were on the scene dealing with the matter.
A Just Stop Oil spokesperson said: “Rishi Sunak is about to U-turn on attending Cop27.
“We demand that he also U-turn on new oil and gas. This genocidal policy will kill millions of people, while failing to address the worst cost of living crisis this country has ever seen.
“It’s time for a serious windfall tax on big oil, without the get-out-of-jail-free tax credits that will encourage more oil and gas that we cannot afford.
“Vulnerable people will be freezing to death in their homes this winter, unable to afford a can of soup, while his Government refuses to tax the rich and the big energy companies that are profiting from our misery.
“We owe it to our young people to stop fossil fuels, we owe it to our workers to create a just transition to a zero-carbon economy, we owe it to our old people to enable them to live with dignity. We are not prepared to stand by and watch while everything we love is destroyed.”
The Metropolitan Police has been contacted for comment.
