A Brighton doctor was among the thousands of people who took to the streets of London yesterday (Friday 21 April) on the first of four days of protest.
Health professionals – representing 26 health groups – are outside the Department for Health now calling for a public health campaign on climate change. See our letter to Steve Barclay in the BMJ today https://t.co/2NUtfGX00v @bmj_latest
@CSkidmoreUK #ClinicalPsychologists pic.twitter.com/JhIlNtnfAC— Association of Clinical Psychologists: Climate (@ACP_UKCAN) April 21, 2023
Daniel Roberts, 33, an accident and emergency registrar, joined doctors in their scrubs protesting outside the Department of Health and Social Care although Dr Roberts wore a large mosquito costume.
He told the PA (Press Association) news agency that he came to London for the weekend because “the effects of pollution and climate change will cause a massive health crisis”.
Dr Roberts said: “We’re standing on a very busy street now. These health pollutants will cause dementia, asthma, lots of respiratory diseases and stunt growth.
“I’ve worked in refugee camps. I’m carrying a huge mosquito because there is more malaria, more dengue (fever) … there are so many more problems than people realise.”
Several organisations, including Extinction Rebellion (XR), held “people’s pickets” outside several government buildings, with an even bigger turnout expected today.
The climate activist group said that it was abandoning its previous more disruptive approach to focus on “relationships over roadblocks”.
The change comes as four members of a similar group, Insulate Britain, were convicted of causing a public nuisance by a jury at Hove Crown Court on Thursday.
The protesters, including two from Brighton, were among 12 members of Insulate Britain who blocked a junction of the M25 in September 2021, with two further trials still to start.
The four defendants in the trial this week (pictured below) are due to be sentenced on Friday 9 June when they are each expected to be fined.
Yesterday, groups of protesters chanted and danced outside government departments in Westminster as they called for more action to tackle the climate crisis.
More than 30,000 people have said that they would attend the protests, branded “The Big One”, starting yesterday and ending on Monday (24 April).
The four days of protest are XR’s first significant action since announcing that it would move away from more controversial methods of protest and “prioritise attendance over arrest and relationships over roadblocks”.
Those attending yesterday held signs calling on the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to scrap plans to develop the Rosebank oil and gas field, west of Shetland.
Extinction Rebellion previously adopted more controversial methods of direct action, with activists blocking roads and gluing themselves to objects to prevent police from moving them on.
And the organisers have also promised that the protests this weekend will not disrupt the London Marathon which is due to take place tomorrow.
Supporters of the protest group Just Stop Oil attended Friday’s demonstration attempting to recruit participants for slow marches which it plans to carry out next week.
Jen Newall, 33, a former university scientist from Glasgow, said that she left her career because of the reality of climate change, saying that it “absolutely terrifying to the point it paralysed me”.
She said: “I’ve come down to London really to speak truth to power ultimately.
“Any new oil and gas is a death sentence to the majority. They (the government) are handing out death sentences. There cannot be any new oil and gas for a liveable future.”
Ms Newall said that the campaign group started this year with a “very clear” change to their protest “tactics and strategy”, moving away from more infamous disruptive protests of recent years.
She said: “We are listening to the public attitude and we understand that disruption doesn’t bring everybody on board.
“We don’t really want to be alienating anybody because, ultimately, we need everybody in this fight for our future.
“We will ensure that we can still have our voice without having to disrupt the marathon.
“If our voices aren’t heard and aren’t listened to, then you can expect a bit more disruption.”
Are those scrubbs his own or did he ‘borrow’ them?
I’d guess his own. I’ve been to some of these protests and met many doctors, nurses and scientists.
Some hospitals have them in vending machines. You swipe your NHS Smartcard and it will allow you access to the colours appropriate to your clinical grade.