Just Stop Oil activists blocking traffic on Waterloo Bridge have been ordered to move off the road by Metropolitan Police after a fourth consecutive day of protests.
Around 60 protesters slowly marched through a series of central London roads, including the Strand near Charing Cross, Borough High Street and Trafalgar Square, around 8am on Thursday.
At 8.45am the Met said it had “issued conditions” to protesters on Waterloo Bridge “to move out of the road as their slow walk from the Strand was causing severe and deliberate disruption to those going about their daily business”.
“The protesters complied and moved out of the road,” the Met added.
The force then issued a Section 12 Public Order Act warning all Just Stop Oil protesters in central London to march on the pavement only.
The warning stated: “This JSO protest must use the pavement for protest within the London Boroughs of Westminster, Lambeth and Southwark until 23:59hrs on Thursday, 27 April 2023.”
The Met said all protesters had complied and were now marching on the pavement.
Just Stop Oil has pledged to continue demonstrations “against this criminal Government and their attempt to license 100 new fossil fuel projects”.
The group started a daily series of demonstrations on Monday, following the sentencing of two activists who scaled Queen Elizabeth II Bridge over the Dartford Crossing last October.
“These marches come in the wake of comments from the Home Secretary vowing further measures in order to ban legal forms of dissent as the Public Order Bill passed through the Commons yesterday,” Just Stop Oil said in a statement on Thursday.
Suami Rocha, 35, a cycling instructor from London said: “Deep down I think we can all sense something is not right. We have to change things, and the only option as normal citizens is to get onto the streets in droves and demand the change required.”
Posting a photo of marchers blocking the road in front of a black Ferrari, Just Stop Oil tweeted: “Driver of £300,000 Ferrari realises they should have got the tube and saved £299,996.”
🚨 TEAM TWO TAKE EAST BOUND LANE ON THE STRAND.
— Just Stop Oil (@JustStop_Oil) April 27, 2023
Driver of £300,000 Ferrari realises they should have got the tube and saved £299,996.#JustStopOil #A22Network #FossilFuels #CostOfGreedCrisis pic.twitter.com/5J6awODjcp
