Insulate Britain M25 Protesters Cleared by Judge Who Says Charges Would Not Be Proportionate

District judge says protesters had 'enormous sincerity'

Protesters from Insulate Britain block the M25 at junction 31, near to the Dartford Crossing in Thurrock, Essex, on Oct. 13, 2021. (Insulate Britain/PA)

A judge has cleared four climate change protesters who blocked access to Britain’s busiest motorway during a protest in 2021 after ruling that a conviction on a charge of wilful obstruction of the highway would not be “proportionate.”

Police arrested 38 activists from the campaign group Insulate Britain after junctions 9 and 10 of the M25 were obstructed for 13 minutes from 7.57 a.m. on Sept. 21, 2021.

But on Wednesday, District Judge Amanda Kelly, sitting at Horsham Magistrates’ Court in West Sussex, ordered Venetia Carter, Diana Warner, Stephen Gower, and Susan Hagley to be found not guilty of wilful obstruction of the highway contrary to the Highways Act 1980.

The activists had argued their actions were legitimate under Articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects the right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly.

Insulate Britain is demanding the government insulate all British homes to reduce energy bills and consumption.

Giving her ruling, Kelly said, “This was a relatively short protest in respect of an issue of considerable importance by four individuals who believed with enormous sincerity in the need to exercise their Article 10 and 11 rights at that particular time and date and at that particular moment in history.”

She said, “I find that the prosecution has failed to make me sure that a criminal conviction would be proportionate.”

“Although I find that the protest caused significant disruption to a large number of people, I have not been provided with evidence of any grave consequences being caused to any individual person or business over and above the sort of inconvenience that is routinely caused by delays on the M25, such as those caused by accidents or other obstructions entering the road,” Kelly added.

She went on to say that her ruling was based on the facts of the case itself and did not offer immunity to any future protests on the M25.

Carter and Hagley glued themselves to the carriageway in an attempt to make it harder for police officers to move them, but were still removed after just 13 minutes.

Protester Feels ‘Vindicated’

Hagley, 67, from Ipswich, said she felt “vindicated” and “relieved.”

She added: “The demands of Insulate Britain have never been more important or relevant at this time of the cost of living crisis and rising fuel poverty. It’s scandalous that in the sixth richest nation in the world thousands die each year from fuel poverty and the climate crisis is affecting millions of people around the world. None of us can be insulated from climate collapse.”

Kelly said: “I have not been provided with evidence of the impact of the delay on any individual motorists. Although the police put out a request on social media for anyone to contact them if they had been severely impacted by the protest, I was told that nobody had responded.”

She said she had not heard any evidence about any emergency vehicles being hindered or delayed and she said the disruption was very short-lived.

Kelly added, “Nevertheless, I take judicial notice of the fact that a large number of ordinary members of the public would have been significantly inconvenienced by the delay to the journey and in some cases caused real discomfort or even distress at missing important appointments or being unable to take a comfort break.”

She also said she felt a conviction for the four would be unlikely to have a deterrent effect on future protesters.

Policing of Insulate Britain’s Protests Cost £4.3 Million

In December 2021, figures obtained by the PA news agency under Freedom of Information revealed that at least £4.3 million had been spent on policing Insulate Britain’s road-blocking protests between Sept. 13 and Nov. 20, 2021.

On its website Insulate Britain says: “We need the government to insulate Britain’s homes to save thousands of lives and prevent economic and social collapse ... Insulating the homes of Britain will save lives and provide warm homes while pound for pound making the most effective contribution to reducing carbon and providing meaningful jobs.”​

The Insulate Britain protests were followed by demonstrations by Just Stop Oil protesters, who climbed up onto gantries above the M25, forcing it to close for several hours and causing huge delays to traffic.

Earlier this week National Highways unveiled a new design for motorway gantries, which would make it harder for protesters to climb up them.

National Highways said, “Although security issues did not form part of the original specification, the new design will be more resilient to trespassers due to entry being concealed within the pillars, making it more difficult to access without authorisation.”

The London-based architecture company Useful Studio produced the winning design.

PA Media contributed to this report.