Downing Street warns Heathrow climate change protesters
August 20, 2007
Downing Street has warned climate change protesters at Heathrow that any action to disrupt the operation of the airport would be unacceptable.
The Prime Minister's spokesman was responding to a question at a briefing on the Prime Minister's view regarding the Heathrow protestors.
The spokesman said the protest was a matter for the authorities and those who ran Heathrow with regards to disruptions.
However, while acknowledging the right of people to protest, the Government was keen to emphasise its stance on direct disruptive action.
Hundreds of protesters have set up camp on the perimeter of Heathrow, for the 2007 Camp for Climate Action.
The protest is expected to go on until 21 August 2007 and the organisers said they expect up to 2000 people at the camp by the weekend, the climax of the protest, when some form of direct action against Heathrow is anticipated.
A source at the Camp for Climate Action campaign said, "It's sheer lunacy in this time of ecological crisis, but the aviation industry are pushing to almost double the airport's capacity by increasing flights and building a third runway. The battle to stop them will be one of the most important environmental battles in Western Europe."
In the 2006 Camp for Climate Action, over 600 people converged on a field in Yorkshire for 10 days, to protest against the Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire.
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