‘Just Stop Oil’ protesters cost police over £3,500,000 in one month | British News

The Just Stop Oil (JSO) protests have cost police more than £3.5million and nearly 11,000 shifts of officers over the past month.

The Metropolitan Police released the figures as nine more JSO supporters were arrested on Wednesday during the group’s latest roadblock marches.

Activists have been staging protests every day since April 24, sparking confrontations with citizens stuck in traffic while activists slowly cross the street.

The £3.5m comes on top of the £7.5m spent by the force responsible for JSO measures between October and December last year.

Police now have the power to force them onto the sidewalk, but arrested the nine JSO supporters on Wednesday for alleged failure to do so.

So far since April 24, 45 JSO supporters have been arrested by police at 78 demonstrations, with some drivers getting into violent arguments.

Met Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said the time between when officers arrived at each crime scene and when conditions were imposed to force protesters off the streets was between 13 and 19 minutes.

He said: “Once officers arrive at the scene, a brief period of engagement and assessment is inevitable, but if we conclude there is a serious disruption, we intervene immediately to get traffic moving again.” bring.”

A man was handcuffed by police after he appeared to push two JSO supporters off the road at Blackfriars Bridge on Tuesday.

The group said a motorcyclist tried to drive through the protesters and in another incident a van crashed into a bus stop as the driver tried to get past the activists.

Other citizens are said to have grabbed banners.

On Friday, a man approached JSO protesters as they slowly marched ahead of traffic on Mansell Street near the Tower of London before snatching banners from them and pushing a woman to the ground.

Mr Twist said: “We absolutely understand why those caught up in traffic delays will be frustrated.”

“I would urge the public not to intervene or take matters into their own hands but to call the police, let us know where the incident is and we will be there quickly.”

“I know that a widely circulated video of a member of the public confronting protesters on May 23 reignited strong public opinion about this protest tactic and our response to it.”

“But we must recognize that brief clips of individual incidents do not tell the full story of a much larger police operation, which we have shown ensures our response times are effective and that our interventions result in streets being cleared with minimal delays .” .’

JSO is conducting what it calls an “indefinite campaign of civil resistance” to shut down all new oil, gas and coal projects in the UK.

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