Police in Surrey have confirmed that more than 20 protesters have been arrested after they blocked parts of the motorway network for the third time this week.
The initial statement from Surrey Police said:
“We were made aware of protesters at junction 9 of the M25 earlier this morning. 14 people have been arrested. We were also made aware shortly after 9am of protesters at junction 1 of the M3. We are on the scene and arrests are being made. Further updates to follow.”
A later update said:
“To update, we have arrested 10 people at junction 1 of the M3, and the carriageway is clear. Junction 9 of the M25 is also clear.”
Insulate Britain say this weeks disruption is just the start. Actions will continue until the government makes a meaningful commitment to insulate Britain’s 29 million leaky homes, some of the oldest and most energy inefficient in Europe.
Liam Norton, 36, an electrician from London said.
“Since waking up to the crisis we are all in, due to the catastrophic breakdown in our climate, I have been shocked at the lack of significant action from our government.
“They need to face up to reality. It will destroy our economy and the fabric of our society. They are being incredibly reckless. They are betting the farm on technologies that don’t exist. A stitch in time saves nine which means if we spend money now we’ll stop a catastrophe later down the line.
“It’s a no brainer. Insulating Britain will reduce emissions, provide hundreds of thousands of jobs and stop our elderly dying in cold homes each winter. So stop messing about Boris and get on with the job!
“As soon as a statement is made that we can trust and is meaningful we will get off the roads”
Zoe Cohen, 51, self employed Mum from Warrington said:
“It’s now proven beyond all doubt, humans have broken the climate with the emissions from fossil fuels. The world my generation, and my parents’ generation was born into has gone, and it’s never coming back.
“The world’s politicians need to be honest and accept this. They need to wake up and do what’s necessary to stop the kids being on an escalator to climate hell. We need real action from our government to reduce emissions in this Parliament – 2050 is far too late.
“Boris needs to stop making things worse – with all their road building, airport expansion, HS2 white elephant and new oil fields – and get on with the obvious stuff like insulating the 29 million homes that need to come off fossil fuels. We can’t get to net zero if they don’t take responsibility for this, only the government can make this happen”
The action comes after a series of unprecedented floods, storms and wildfires wreaked havoc across the globe this summer and the latest UN climate report which has put the world on red-alert.