Just Stop Oil activists given record jail terms for planning M25 protest

Supporters express outrage over sentences of up to five years

- Damien Gayle

Five supporters of the Just Stop Oil climate campaign who conspired to cause gridlock on the M25 were sentenced to lengthy jail terms yesterday by a judge who told them they had "crossed the line from concerned campaigner to fanatic".

Roger Hallam, Daniel Shaw, Louise Lancaster, Lucia Whittaker De Abreu and Cressida Gethin were found guilty last week of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance for coordinating direct action protests on London's orbital motorway over four days in November 2022. Hallam received a five-year term, while the other four were each sentenced to four years.

The sentences are thought to be the longest ever given in the UK for non-violent protest, exceeding terms of three years and two years and seven months respectively given to Just Stop Oil protesters Morgan Trowland and Marcus Decker for scaling the Dartford Crossing.

All five defendants had spoken on a Zoom call trying to recruit volunteers for the actions, which involved activists climbing motorway gantries at strategic points on the motorway, a key road transport link.

On the call, Hallam said they intended to cause "the biggest disruption in British modern history" in an effort to force the government to meet Just Stop Oil's core demand: an end to new oil and gas exploration in the North Sea.

Passing sentence at Southwark crown court the judge, Christopher Hehir, said: "The offending of all five of you is very serious indeed and lengthy custodial sentences must follow."