MANCHESTER: A number of Greenpeace protesters scaled the British Houses of Parliament in London on Sunday in an effort to greet Members of Parliament (MPs) returning to work from their summer break the following day with a message to do more to protect the climate. Greenpeace stated that some 55 volunteers were involved in the protest, which they described as “a new style of politics in Britain.†A number came down from the building on Sunday night, whilst the remainder spent the night on the Parliament building. After some of the protesters climbed down from the building on Monday morning, 20 people were arrested on suspicion of trespassing a protected site. Around 20 people remain on the roof. In a statement released on their website, Greenpeace stated that “with just 60 days go until the critical climate summit in Copenhagen – which faces a very real chance of failure as things stand – Britain has yet to show true commitment to making the process a success.” After scaling the building with ladders, the protesters unraveled florescent yellow banners reading, “Change the politics, save the climate.†The Greenpeace protesters stated that they told police who they were and their intentions before initiating the protest and scaling the building. This latest demonstration reignites a long-standing debate about the level of security surrounding the governmental building and is the latest in a series of direct action campaigns. In 2008 campaigners scaled the Houses of Parliament to protest the expansion of Heathrow Airport and in 2005 campaigners from the fathers’ rights group Fathers for Justice launched a protest on top of the parliament building after buying a tourist day pass ticket and climbing out of an open window onto the roof. Direct action is of increasing popularity in the UK due to its tendency to attract media attention and is considered to be a quick and simple way to get a message to a number of people. BM
