Police finally crack down on eco mobs as they haul M25 protesters off the road before they block rush-hour traffic

23 August 2022, 08:00 | Updated: 23 August 2022, 09:37

Police hauled Just Stop Oil protesters off the road before they could block rush-hour traffic near the M25 on Tuesday.

The eco group headed onto the motorway in Grays, Essex, in the early hours of Tuesday but were stopped from causing further travel chaos when they were detained by officers.

Videos taken by LBC show around 10 protesters sitting in St Clements Way, which runs alongside the M25 next to the Dartford Crossing to Kent, blocking lorries from being able to pass through.

Within minutes police arrived at the scene and dragged activists out of the road.

A number of protesters had glued their hands to the tarmac, with specialist officers brought in to unstick them safely.

Ten activists - who held orange banners plastered with 'Just Stop Oil' - were arrested by Essex Police at the scene in St Clements Way.

Read more: Grant Shapps threatens prison to Just Stop Oil protesters who block M25

Police swoop in to arrest Just Stop Oil protesters on M25.mp4

A further eight people were arrested at a separate demonstration at Chafford Hundred railway station.

Officers were sent to a third demonstration at an industrial site at Askew Farm Lane, where they are are responding to reports of people at height. Two people have been arrested.

A total of 50 Just Stop Oil protesters were involved in disrupting oil supplies from two critical oil facilities on Tuesday.

Inspector Stuart Austin said: “We are working to resolve these situations as quickly and safely for all those involved.

“We have plans in place to deal with incidents like these and have acted swiftly to deal with them and make 18 arrests so far.

“We are focussed on keeping the county moving and keeping you safe.

“Road disruption is currently minimal and I’d like to thank local drivers, workers, and business for their patience.

“I want to be clear: policing is not anti-protest but we must intervene where there is a risk to life or where laws are being broken.”

Around 30 people were involved in the actions in Essex, which included establishing a roadblock on St. Clements Way, a key tanker route to and from the Navigator terminal and occupying the Grays oil terminal in Thurrock.

In North Warwickshire around 20 people have blocked or attempted to block Trinity Road and Piccadilly Way, the two main access roads to the Kingsbury Oil Terminal.

Catherine Rennie-Nash, 72, a retired teacher from Kendal, who is taking action today in Essex said: "I am beyond angry about the government’s plans to allow more oil and gas projects in the UK. I have no choice but to be in civil resistance.

"We need to understand that the government isn’t protecting us. The cost of living crisis is a choice, sky-high fuel bills is a choice, new oil and gas is a choice. Government is allowing companies to steal our wealth and destroy our future, they are criminals."

Meanwhile, 20-year-old Sam Holland, said: “Consenting to more fossil fuels is consenting to the collapse of our food systems. It is consenting to the collapse of our societies, and to the deaths of hundreds of millions of people. Make no mistake – those in power who have planned this will be tried for crimes against humanity.”

The crackdown comes after the Transport Secretary Grant Shapps slammed Just Stop Oil protesters for putting lives "at risk" by causing travel chaos on motorways across the country.

Mr Shapps posted on Twitter earlier this month that the Government will "not stand by" and allow protesters to breach injunctions.

"Just Stop Oil protesters have been served with a National Highways injunction which covers the M25, and could face imprisonment or fines if they breach it by blocking the roads again," Mr Shapps wrote.

"We will not stand by while lives are put at risk and roads are ground to a halt."

The new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which became law in April, is designed to clamp down on "noisy" protests, such as those on the M25 by Extinction Rebellion (XR) and Just Stop Oil.

Police chiefs are now able to put more conditions on static protests, such as those organised by XR where roads and bridges are targeted.

It means police have the power to impose a start and finish time, and set noise limits.

It also became a crime to fail to follow restrictions the protesters "ought" to have known about, even if they have not received a direct order from an officer.

Previously, police have needed to prove that protesters knew they had been told to move on, before they could be said to have broken the law.

The new law also includes an offence of "intentionally or recklessly causing public nuisance".

This is designed to stop people occupying public spaces and hanging off bridges.

Just Stop Oil is a coalition of groups trying to force the Government to end all new licences for the exploration, development and production of fossil fuels.

Its tactics are similar to those of Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain, whose members have caused chaos by gluing themselves to roads and vehicles.