More than 20 arrested after activists glue themselves to road

Protesters were dragged away by members of the public in Shoreditch

More than 20 people have been arrested after climate activists glued themselves to tarmac and formed a roadblock in east London.

Just Stop Oil said around 20 people created a roadblock in Shoreditch High Street at about 12:00 BST on Saturday.

One driver was seen telling the protesters to move because he was trying to get his partner to hospital.

The Met Police said 26 people were arrested for wilful obstruction of the highway. The road has since reopened.

Police officers and members of the public were seen pulling the protesters from the road.

One motorist was filmed reversing and then revving his engine as he drove slowly towards a group of the activists who were blocking his path while filming him.

'Continuous disruption'

The driver, who stopped his vehicle, was heard telling the demonstrators: "My missus is not well, mate. She needs to get to the hospital."

He told them to get out of the way and added: "Have some respect for other people, not just yourselves, yeah. There's other people that need to get places."

Police said specialist officers were deployed to "carry out debonding" on activists who had glued themselves to the road.

Just Stop Oil is in its 15th day of causing "continuous disruption" across the capital, with action expected to last for more than a month.

The Met Police said of the 28 arrests made on Friday, 25 had been bailed pending further inquiries.

The government said while it respected the right to protest, "people's day-to-day lives should not be disrupted, and criminal activity will not be tolerated".

A spokesman said the government remained "fully committed to reaching net zero by 2050... with 40% of our power now coming from cleaner and cheaper renewable sources".

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