A 79-year-old vicar was among Insulate Britain protesters arrested as they launched fresh demonstrations near London, Birmingham and Manchester.
The group said that around 60 demonstrators descended on junction 23 of the M25 near London, junction 6 of the M56 in Manchester and the A4400 in Birmingham on Tuesday morning.
The London and Manchester roads are part of the strategic road network and covered by a super injunction granted to National Highways last week.
BREAKING: INSULATE BRITAIN DEFIES MULTIPLE INJUNCTIONS IN 3 MAJOR CITIES
🦺60 people from #InsulateBritain are disrupting traffic in #London, #Birmingham and #Manchester as our campaign of nonviolent civil resistance continues. pic.twitter.com/04sQ9bQjvG— Insulate Britain (@InsulateLove) November 2, 2021
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Around 20 demonstrators arrived at the M25 but were stopped by police from getting into the road at about 8am.
Six sat on the pavement with a banner, and some glued themselves to the ground.
Another two managed to glue themselves to one lane of the carriageway on a quiet part of the roundabout.
A group of officers have been lifting activists from the pavement and putting them in the back of a van.
Reverend Sue Parfitt, 79, a retired family therapist from Bristol, was among those detained.
More than a dozen officers and seven police vehicles were at the scene.
Some passers-by shouted expletives at the protesters while other beeped their horns.
Jess, 25, who had glued her hand to the road, said: “Before we started doing this no-one was talking about insulation, nobody cared about it, nobody knew it was an issue now, and it’s been in the newspapers and it’s been all over people’s dinner table conversations for the last six weeks.
“They say ‘we agree with your cause but not the tactics’, but at the end of the day they only know about our cause because of our tactics.”
Nine demonstrators have received committal papers in relation to an injunction granted to National Highways to curb activist roadblocks, an Insulate Britain spokesperson confirmed.
Those who break the injunctions could be found in contempt of court and face a maximum penalty of two years in prison or an unlimited fine.
Diana Warner, 62, a retired GP, said: “One of the important reasons for coming out today was to say we’re all together. It’s not just nine.”
#INCIDENT | We're currently responding to a protest on Wilmslow Road (A538), close to Manchester Airport.
We're working at the scene to minimise disruption and we'll provide updates in due course.
Delays are expected & we ask people travelling to avoid the area if possible. pic.twitter.com/QVzrmIITf0— Greater Manchester Police (@gmpolice) November 2, 2021
Activists have blocked roads on 18 days since September 13, causing misery for drivers stuck in long queues of traffic.
A Hertfordshire Police spokesperson said: “Police were called at 7.45am today (Tuesday November 2nd) to reports of protesters near junction 23 (Bignells Corner) of the M25.
“Officers are at the scene and working to resolve the disruption as quickly as possible.
“Police also received reports of protesters near the A1081 St Albans Road at around 8.20am. Officers are on the scene and partial road closures have been put in place.
“Several people have been arrested.”
Greater Manchester Police said officers were responding to the protest on Wilmslow Road (A538) near junction 6 of the M56 and Manchester Airport.
The force said: “Delays are expected and we ask people travelling to avoid the area if possible.”
So far, 161 people have been involved in the roadblock campaign and there have been 770 arrests, excluding Tuesday’s action.
