Eco-warriors descended on London Heathrow today as they plotted to bring misery to Easter holidaymakers amid plans to ‘shut down’ the airport and disrupt traffic for families planning a bank holiday getaway.
The Extinction Rebellion protest, which is now in its fifth day, has already brought parts of London to a standstill by blocking four major routes of Waterloo Bridge, Oxford Circus, Marble Arch and Parliament Square since Monday.
This morning, some 15 children all aged under 17 held a large banner with the words ‘Are we the last generation?’ on a roundabout outside Heathrow terminals two and three as they were surrounded by dozens of police.
The heavy police presence stopped them standing on the road, according to the group. Among those involved was Maya Rivett-Martinez, 15, who said the ‘constant fear for my future is what gives me the need for change’.
Also at the protest was Felix, 14, who said he was there ‘because when I have children I want to be able to tell them I did everything I could to protect their futures’, while Mia, 13, said it was ‘because something has to change’.
The police at Heathrow are among more than 1,000 officers being deployed daily to tackle the protests, although they have up to now failed to restore order elsewhere – leading to claims they are surrendering the streets.
Later today, protest organisers said there will be a procession of youth members of Extinction Rebellion marching from the Eros Statue at Piccadilly Circus to Oxford Circus on a so-called ‘Day of Love’ in the capital.
They will be joined by Hollywood actress Emma Thompson, who was also at the protests at Marble Arch yesterday, and actors Lee Ross from White Gold and The Catherine Tate Show, and Paapa Essiedu from Press and Kiri.
Extinction Rebellion protesters are surrounded by police as they protest at London Heathrow Airport this morning
Extinction Rebellion protesters link arms as they sit on the pavement next to a roundabout at Heathrow Airport today
Police officers stand guard in a line during the Extinction Rebellion protest outside Heathrow Airport this morning
Some of the young people involved in the Extinction Rebellion protest at London Heathrow Airport today appear emotional
Climate change activists hold a banner saying ‘Are we the last generation?’ as they attend the protest at Heathrow today
The heavy police presence at Heathrow today stopped the protesters standing on the road, according to Extinction Rebellion
The climate change activists, from Left-wing group Extinction Rebellion, expect to be joined by hundreds more supporters off work for Easter. As pressure grew on the authorities to act yesterday:
■ Home Secretary Sajid Javid urged police to use the ‘full force of the law’;
■ London Mayor Sadiq Khan blamed Government cuts and asked for more cash;
■ Officers caught dancing and skateboarding with activists received a dressing down;
■ Only eight protesters have been charged, with hundreds of others released because resources are so squeezed;
■ Company bosses complained the chaos had forced them to lay off staff.
Leaked messages, apparently sent by privately-educated ringleader Robin Boardman-Pattison, 21, laid out the plot to cause travel chaos.
They said: ‘Tomorrow we will raise the bar. We are going to shut down Heathrow. For the bank holiday, we are turning our focus on to the aviation industry. There is a deep remorse for those whose holiday and family plans will be disrupted.
‘However, the aviation industry needs to be targeted and we are all aware of the deep, structural change that needs to come. We are all going to face pushback on this. Keep on going everybody. Keep rebelling.’
Protesters were told to get a specific train out of London and congregate on a petrol station forecourt near the airport.
Extinction Rebellion protesters become emotional as they hold a demonstration outside London Heathrow Airport today
Two climate change activists become emotional during the Extinction Rebellion protest outside Heathrow Airport today
A climate change activist stands next to a group of police officers during the Extinction Rebellion protest at Heathrow today
About 15 children all aged under 17 held a large banner with the words ‘Are we the last generation?’ at Heathrow today
Extinction Rebellion protesters become emotion as they are surrounded by police outside London Heathrow Airport today
The good weather – with sunshine and highs of 77F (25C) – is expected to draw yet more crowds to the streets.
Yesterday, ‘swarming’ protests took place at Vauxhall Bridge when protesters stopped traffic intermittently for up to ten minutes. This can be more disruptive to traffic than permanent diversion.
Mr Boardman-Pattison flounced out of a Sky News interview on Wednesday after it was suggested he and his fellow demonstrators were patronising and self-indulgent.
He has previously said his group would like to see planes ‘only used in emergencies’. His social media pages feature a series of photos of him enjoying skiing holidays abroad and visiting the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy.
Last night Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Nick Ephgrave said the protests were ‘increasing in intensity’ and warned demonstrators against targeting Heathrow.
He added: ‘Protesters can expect a robust police response. We are determined to keep the airport operating.’
The police at Heathrow this morning are among more than 1,000 officers being deployed daily to tackle the protests
Police officers stand next to the Extinction Rebellion protesters at London Heathrow Airport this morning
A police van and anti-protest vehicles from Specialist Group Internation outside London Heathrow Airport this morning
The Metropolitan Police added in a statement: ‘The airport is part of our national infrastructure and we will not allow the illegal activities of protesters to cause further disruption and misery to thousands of travellers, many of them families, over Easter.
‘We would urge any protester planning to attend Heathrow to strongly reconsider.’
The airport urged passengers to check with airlines for potential delays and said it was ‘working with the authorities’ to address the threat of protests.
Travellers whose flights are delayed or cancelled by activists have been warned they may not receive any compensation.
Coby Benson, a travel lawyer at Bott & Co, said the demos are likely to be considered ‘extraordinary circumstances’ – meaning they are not the airline’s responsibility.
Mr Khan, who has this week been accused of offering tacit support to the protesters, condemned their plans.
He said: ‘I support the democratic right to peaceful protest and agree that governments need to do more to tackle climate change, but these protests are now putting Londoners’ safety at risk.
‘This is extremely dangerous, illegal and is putting an unacceptable toll on our police force.’
Extinction Rebellion has warned that its ‘non-violent’ protests will escalate if its demands are not met. It wants the Government to introduce a legally-binding policy to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2025.
Extinction Rebellion protesters gather at Parliament Square last night as the total number of arrested protesters reached 500
Police officers arrest Extinction Rebellion protesters during a demonstration at Parliament Square in London last night
Climate activists glued their hands to the floor at an Extinction Rebellion demonstration in Parliament Square last night
The activists have vowed to keep blocking key thoroughfares in London. As of last night, there had been more than 500 arrests.
Since Monday, Waterloo Bridge has been closed to traffic in both directions, with protesters planting trees, setting up vegan food stalls and erecting a skate park.
In Oxford Circus, London’s main shopping district, protesters have taken over the streets, parking a bright pink boat on the main intersection. Police believe it has been bolted to the tarmac.
Meanwhile, both Parliament Square and Marble Arch have also been completely shut down by non-stop demonstrations.
The latter has seen a yurt and compostable toilet erected on the road. Police have been drafted in from neighbouring forces to help tackle the threat and keep the airport open.
Yesterday, it emerged only eight of those arrested this week have been charged with an offence. All the others have been released under investigation because resources are so squeezed.
Three of the eco-warriors found themselves behind bars yesterday after gluing themselves to a Docklands Light Railway train at Canary Wharf station on Wednesday as part of the protests.
Cambridge-educated Cathy Eastburn, 51, Buddhist teacher Mark Ovland, 35, and Luke Watson, 29, all indicated not guilty pleas to obstructing trains or carriages but were denied bail when they appeared before Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court.
In another hearing yesterday, climate change activist Robert Pounds, 55, from Howdon, Tyne and Wear, denied obstruction charges after being arrested on London’s Waterloo Bridge.
He spent two days in custody before being brought to Westminster Magistrates’ Court yesterday. He pleaded not guilty and was granted bail.
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Skateboarding, dancing, snoozing… another hard day on police’s front line as Home Secretary warns of using ‘full force of the law’ against eco activists
Scotland Yard chiefs were in the dock last night after failing to explain how they will clear the streets of eco-warriors involved in crippling protests across the capital.
As they faced mounting criticism over their softly-softly tactics, they issued a rambling 880-word statement insisting they have a ‘robust policing plan’.
But they gave no guarantees the protests will be brought to a halt any time soon – meaning widespread disruption to commuters could last until after the Easter break.
The row came as footage emerged of police officers dancing and skateboarding in the street with protesters – and one officer apparently napping in a police car.
And in an extraordinary admission, the Met said it had ‘no legal basis’ to physically and forcibly stop the protesters from moving around London.
‘These are peaceful protesters. While disruptive, their actions are not violent towards police, themselves or members of the public,’ it added.
The lack of any firm action from the authorities seemed to give the protesters fresh impetus.
Organisers said they expected more to join the protests, issuing a statement – which was later deleted – saying: ‘Easter weekend is tomorrow and thousands more rebels will join.
Police struggle to arrest 350 and there are ten times that number prepared to be arrested. The hollowed-out British State is overwhelmed.’
As the row over police tactics intensified, the Met revealed only eight protesters have been charged out of more than 460 arrested.
It added it had called in back-up officers from other forces and cancelled leave.
Last night Sajid Javid and Sadiq Khan were at loggerheads over the force’s controversial methods.
The Home Secretary said he expected the police to ‘use the full force of the law’ against activists who act illegally, saying everyone had the right to peaceful protest but ‘I totally condemn any protesters who are stepping outside the boundaries of the law’.
But London Mayor Mr Khan – who on Wednesday praised the eco-warrior group for its ‘co-operation’ – tried to make political capital out of the handling by police, suggesting in a letter to Mr Javid that the Met’s ability to enforce the law had been made ‘significantly harder’ by ‘the huge cuts to Government police funding’.
Government sources accused Mr Khan of ‘deflection tactics’.
Last night London Assembly Member Andrew Boff called for an inquiry into how Mr Khan and Scotland Yard had responded to the protests.
He said: ‘Questions have to be asked about whether the Mayor has tacitly encouraged Extinction Rebellion to bring our city to a grinding halt, having admitted he ‘shares passion’ with the group.
‘Sadiq Khan and senior Met Police officers owe Londoners an explanation; how have they failed to bring an end to this chaos and how long will it continue?’
In its statement last night, the Met said it had more than 1,000 officers on the streets policing the demonstrations, which have seen activists blockade four major routes through London.
‘This is putting a strain on the Met and we have now asked officers on the boroughs to work 12-hour shifts; we have cancelled rest days and our Violent Crime Task Force (VCTF) have had their leave cancelled,’ it said.
It added it has a ‘duty to balance the rights of those engaged in protest and who are acting within the law, against the needs and rights of Londoners to go about their daily lives with minimum disruption’.
Police at Oxford Circus – where a pink boat appears to have been bolted to the ground – yesterday persisted with a tactic of sporadically selecting a protester to arrest before carrying them from the crowd to whoops and cheers from activists.
Each arrest took at least four officers, as every protester would ‘play dead’ and had to be carried away.
Among those led away by police was a 77-year-old Anglican vicar.
Reverend Sue Parfitt, from Bristol, locked herself under a lorry which was used to block the road at the protest at Marble Arch on Monday.
A friend described her as ‘an inspiration’, adding: ‘She was prepared to get arrested if it came to it.’
A senior Police Federation official said on Wednesday that officers had not cleared the protests because the Government and senior officers had not given clear instructions to do so.
Hours later, images emerged of his colleagues enjoying an overnight rave with eco-warriors, smiling in hi-vis jackets as they danced to music blaring from the pink boat.
The officers looked appreciative of the protesters’ chants of ‘we love you’. One officer can be seen applauding as the crowd cheered.
But a police chief yesterday described their antics as ‘unacceptable’ after the footage appeared on Twitter.
A police officer is pictured sleeping in his car on Wednesday night during the Extinction Rebellion protest at Marble Arch
Scotland Yard said inquiries were being made to identify the officers involved. Met Commander Jane Connors said: ‘I’m disappointed by the video and the unacceptable behaviour of the officers in it.
‘We expect our officers to engage with protesters but clearly their actions fall short of the tone of the policing operation at a time when people are frustrated at the actions of the protesters.
‘We will be reminding officers of their responsibilities and expectations in policing this operation – however the majority of officers have been working long hours and I am grateful to them for their continued commitment.’
Her condemnation came as footage also emerged of an officer apparently asleep in his car, while another was seen skateboarding in daylight on Waterloo Bridge along a section of road where ‘climate justice now’ was sprayed in pink letters.