Greenpeace activists block Downing Street with oil splattered statue of Boris Johnson
The activists also chained themselves to barrels that appeared to be dripping with oil
Greenpeace protesters used a Boris Johnson statue splattered with oil to block the road outside Downing Street earlier today (October 11).
Protesters branded signs that read “Boris: Stop Cambo”, in reference to the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow at the end of this month, where the Prime Minister plans to sign off on new drilling permits at Cambo oilfield, west of Shetland.
A plaque beneath the statue read: “Cambo oil field: Boris Johnson’s monumental climate failure.”
The activists also chained themselves to barrels that appeared to be dripping with oil, blocking part of Whitehall.
If approved, Cambo would produce 170M barrels of oil and significantly worsen the climate crisis in the coming decades.
The Metropolitan Police Events Twitter confirmed that they have made seven arrests on suspicion of obstructing the highway, adding that the barrels have been removed.
The force earlier confirmed there were sixteen activists locked onto eight barrels at the protest.
“Those barrels will undoubtedly have complex lock-ons devices inside which the activists are attached to.
“Our specialist removal teams are working quickly to dismantle the devices and reopen roads.’
A statement on the Stop Cambo website reads: “The Cambo field is expected to operate until 2050, the date by which our government has said the UK would reach ‘net zero’ (this is when the amount of greenhouse gas produced is equal to the amount removed from the atmosphere). But Cambo is just the beginning.”
It adds: “Cambo is one of many North Sea oil and gas projects waiting for government approval.”
A total of 18 new projects in the pipeline mean that there is potential to create 1.7 billion barrels of oil.
”This much new oil will blow us past our safe climate limits,” the website states.
A recent tweet by Greenpeace UK said: “Thank you to @StopCambo coalition for joining our stand against the government’s over-reliance on fossil fuels.
“With the gas price crisis hitting people across the UK we must come together and push for a just transition to renewable energy, not more oil fields. #BorisStopCambo.”
Just last week Greenpeace also lost a legal battle attempting to block the Vorlich oil development where Ithaca Energy and BP have started development.
Johnson is not currently at Downing Street, and is reportedly on holiday in Spain, according to Sky.