Rochdale activist arrested for painting airport departure boards in gas and oil protest

A Rochdale activist has been arrested for painting the departure boards at Heathrow Airport, to demand a fossil fuel treaty to end oil and gas by 2030.

Jane Touil, a Just Stop Oil supporter, was one of two people who covered the boards with bright orange paint, as well as the entrance hall at terminal five, before being stopped by police.

Just Stop Oil is working with groups internationally to demand governments establish a fossil fuel treaty, to end the extraction and burning of oil, gas and coal in the next six years.

The campaign is to encourage governments to work together to establish a legally binding treaty, to stop extracting and burning oil, gas and coal by 2030 as well as supporting and financing poorer countries to make a fast, fair, and just transition.

Jane Touil, 58, said: “We are in the greatest crisis humanity has ever faced and governments are not doing what is needed to protect us.

“Ordinary people have to stand up and make their governments do the right thing, because without pressure from us, they won’t. I feel so angry and betrayed that politicians have let this happen when they’ve known about climate breakdown for over 50 years.”

“Fossil fuel companies are maxing out profits, while hundreds of millions of people pay the price with their lives!

“Our government must commit to signing a legally binding fossil fuel treaty to end the extraction and burning of fossil fuels by 2030 – and it must support poorer countries to get off fossil fuels too.”

Their action comes after the wettest 18 months in the UK, farmers have been warning it is the worst growing season in 42 years, leading to waterlogged fields of rotting vegetables.

British weather has always been changeable, but the recent extremes have been unprecedented.

June last year was the second warmest on record, with July the second wettest. September was then the warmest on record, followed by the wettest October and the fifth wettest December.

Research suggests that another implication of a warmer world will be an increasingly sluggish jet stream, resulting in ‘weather blocking’- longer periods of the same type of weather, leading to more droughts and floods.

The Oil Kills international uprising has been taking action at airports around the world. 21 groups across 12 countries have taken action at 18 airports around the world.

Just Stop Oil states that: "As long as political leaders fail to take swift and decisive action to protect our communities from the worst effects of climate breakdown, Just Stop Oil supporters, working with other groups internationally, will take the proportionate action necessary to generate much needed political pressure."