A Just Stop Oil protestor has doused the headquarters of a controversial lobbying organisation in paint, as part of its latest action during a month of Westminster protests.
55 Tufton Street, London, was covered in orange paint by a retired bouncer from south London, while six activists blocked the road.
The building is the registered address of The Global Warming Policy Foundation, a self-described non-partisan think tank which recently rebranded as Net Zero Watch.
Founded by former Conservative chancellor Lord Lawson, the group has historically sought to combat policies designed to mitigate climate change, and expressed scepticism on the scientific consensus over global heating.
A Just Stop Oil spokesperson said: “Politics is broken. It was broken here in Tufton Street by shady lobbyists who now stalk the corridors of power… Liz Truss’s toxic pro-oil policies helped end her career – and unless we ditch them, they’ll finish us off too.
“We’re here today to fight Big Oil. Famine, pestilence, war — the people in this building don’t care. They’ve got their snouts in the trough. I’m just a normal guy from South London. I’m doing this for my kids and grandkids. Support Just Stop Oil.”
Earlier this year a group of 50 Just Stop Oil activists formed roadblocks at ‘critical oil terminals’.
🚨 BREAKING: FOSSIL FUEL LOBBYIST HQ SPRAYED WITH PAINT 🚨
🚧 At 11am today, six Just Stop Oil supporters blocked the road and sprayed paint on 55 Tufton Street – headquarters of fossil fuel lobbyists that backed Liz Truss.#FreeLouis #FreeJosh #CivilResistance #A22Network pic.twitter.com/K9c48gkVmO
— Just Stop Oil ⚖️💀🛢 (@JustStop_Oil) October 25, 2022
Star of Red Dwarf and television presenter, Robert Llewellyn, took to Twitter to share images of the building being cleaned later in the day, saying: “Walked past 55 Tufton Street on the way here. The home of some fearsomely unpleasant extremists. Someone was washing it.”
Walked past 55 Tufton Street on the way here. The home of some fearsomely unpleasant extremists. Someone was washing it. pic.twitter.com/TY5Ei2XOIc
— Robert Llewellyn (@bobbyllew) October 25, 2022
Every day throughout October the group supporters are meeting outside Westminster at 11 am to demand the government ends oil and gas development.
The group has publically stated that taking part in these rallies may result in being arrested.
Just Stop Oil has said that it is now Rishi Sunak’s responsibility to stop new oil and gas licenses in the “best interests of humanity”.
Images from Tufton Street
