Fracking police swoop on demo tea lady, 77
SURROUNDED by burly police officers, this is the moment a greatgrandmother was forced to move from an anti-fracking demo – for serving tea and cakes.
For a month, Jackie Brooks, 77, provided refreshments on a makeshift stall – complete with a polite notice asking her customers to return the crockery.
But after the retired nurse refused to move, police dragged her table away.
Video footage showed at least eight officers at the Kirby Misperton fracking site in North Yorkshire, with two looming over Mrs Brooks, apparently trying to convince her to move.
At one point they tried to lead her away by the arms, as angry protesters chanted ‘shame’ and, ‘This is England, not 1930s Germany.’
The mother of three claimed she was first approached by two officers on Monday. After several failed attempts to convince her to go, Mrs Brooks said police resorted to lifting her table up and moving it away, leaving her no alternative.
But according to North Yorkshire Police, she and other protesters were moved over fears a nearby 10ft tower made up of wooden pallets might collapse and injure them. Standing at the site Mrs Brooks said: ‘I was prepared for the fact that I might be arrested. It was quite scary when I was surrounded by around eight police.
‘It’s called being ‘kettled’, where the police manipulate you and move you, and it was pretty daunting.’ Protesters then began singing ‘Jackie put the kettle on’ in support. Mrs Brooks described safety fears over the wooden pallets as a ‘load of rubbish’ and branded the police actions ‘bullying tactics’. Council officials had raised concerns over the pallets tower, and on Monday night officers began dismantling it.
Anti-fracking campaigner Leigh Coghill said: ‘How have we come to this point where we have a great-grandmother who is serving tea and making breakfast being sur- rounded by police?’ Third Energy is set to conduct test fracks at the site, which could pave the way for shale gas extraction.
Protests have been common at the site – with 26 arrests in the last month. Superintendent Lindsey Robson, of North Yorkshire Police, said: ‘While some people were unhappy, we spoke to them and asked them to move for their own safety. We will always act to protect people from harm.’