Green MP held as police finally move in on the fracking mob
Police cave in to mob rule over fracking
GREEN MP Caroline Lucas was among more than 30 people arrested yesterday as police moved in on the Balcombe anti-fracking protest. The Brighton MP was among dozens of activists blocking the entrance of the West Sussex site preventing energy company Cuadrilla’s trucks entering.
Hundreds of other protesters taunted the police by chanting: ‘There are many, many more of us than you.’
The campaigners, many hardened environmental activists, have been buoyed by Sussex Police advice to Cuadrilla last week that they could not guarantee to protect the site from incursions.
As a result, Cuadrilla temporarily ‘scaled back’ its operations, a move seized on as victory by the anti-fracking groups.
But yesterday Sussex officers, appearing to respond to public criticism of that advice, began forcibly removing any activists hindering Cuadrilla’s exploratory drilling at the site.
Miss Lucas was heard to scream: ‘That’s my son’ as a man aged in his early 20s sitting near her was one of the first to be led away by police.
Officers then spoke to her briefly before leading her away to a police van.
Sussex Police has received help from ten other forces in the operation. Officer numbers swelled to more than 400 to face down the estimated 700 protesters.
Police surrounded the area and forced the protesters back just after lunchtime yesterday. A few who taunted officers were pulled out of the crowd and arrested by ‘snatch squads’.
A barrier of bicycles set up by protesters to slow down the police was quickly moved out of the way.
As she was led away, Miss Lucas said: ‘Along with everyone else who took action today, I’m trying to stop a process which could cause enormous damage for decades to come.
‘The evidence is clear that fracking undermines efforts to tackle the climate crisis and poses potential risks to the local environment.’
Cuadrilla had hoped to carry out exploratory drilling to assess if it is worth applying for a licence to extract shale gas that might involve fracking. The overall police operation against the protesters is expected to cost taxpayers more than £2million as it goes into its third week.
Police from other areas where fracking applications have been made have sent observers to the scene of the protests.
In London, a group of anti-frack- ing protesters yesterday glued their hands to the door of the offices of Bell Pottinger, the PR firm representing Cuadrilla.
Another activist climbed the High Holborn building and unfurled a banner bearing the words ‘Bell Pottinger – fracking liars’. During the noisy six-hour protest, six women aged between 25 and 59 accused the PR firm of ‘spinning dirty lies’.
Protesters also said they had staged a demonstration outside the home of former energy secretary Lord Howell, erecting an estate agent-style ‘For Shale’ sign.
Lord Howell became a target for their action when he said fracking should go ahead in the North East because it had ‘large and uninhabited and desolate areas’, before claiming he had meant the North West.
Fracking pumps liquid at high pressure deep underground to split shale rock and release gas to be used as fuel. Campaigners say this might pollute local water supplies and cause earthquakes.
Miss Lucas has two adult sons, but it was unclear last night which one had been arrested.
Police were unable to say whether Miss Lucas had been charged or was still in custody last night.
David Cameron yesterday broke his silence over whether he would support fracking in his Witney constituency, saying he would welcome it. It comes a week after his spokesman declined ten times to give a definitive answer on the controversial practice.
Yesterday the same spokesman said: ‘If locally-led planning processes were followed then yes, the Prime Minister would be happy [for fracking to go ahead].’
Mr Cameron has said the whole country should accept fracking as it might potentially cut rising energy bills.