Today, five environmental activists were sentenced to jail for organising protests that caused significant traffic disruptions on the M25 for four days. In November 2022, 45 members of Just Stop Oil climbed gantries on the motorway in an attempt to cause gridlock across southern England. Their actions resulted in nearly 51,000 hours of driver delays, with motorists missing flights, medical appointments, and exams. Additionally, prosecutors alleged the protests led to an economic cost of at least £765,000, while the cost to the Metropolitan Police was put at more than £1.1m.
The defendants, Roger Hallam, Daniel Shaw, Louise Lancaster, Lucia Whittaker De Abreu, and Cressida Gethin, were all found to have committed conspiracy to intentionally cause a public nuisance, the longest sentence since the introduction of the new law by the last government to clamp down on disruptive protests.
Judge Christopher Hehir convicted the defendants of “crossing the line from concerned campaigners to fanatics”, stating that they appointed themselves as “sole arbiters of what should be done about climate change.” The protesters were all arrested close to the M25, and Whittaker De Abreu and Gethin were dressed to climb gantries that crossed the motorway. Lancaster rented a safe house for activists due to take part in the protest and bought climbing equipment.
Representing herself in court, Lancaster argued that the impact of climate change meant it was a critical point in human history. Gethin stated that it was always her intention to limit the harm caused by the disruption. A barrister for Hallam stated that he had rejected direct action campaigning due to its limitations and changed his approach to more conventional political campaigning. The judge responded that the campaigner had “turned the trial into a piece of direct action protest.”
The law of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance, which was introduced in 2022, outlaws direct action that causes “serious harm” to a section of the public. This can include property damage, injury, serious distress, annoyance or inconvenience. In April 2023, Morgan Trowland was jailed for three years for an offence under the new legislation, which allowed the judge in the M25 case to hand down sentences of up to 10 years-more than for some violent offences
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