Priti Patel urged police to deploy severe new powers last night to prevent fuel protesters from shutting down Britain’s roadways.
The Home Secretary advised authorities to detain and punish drivers who participated in “go-slow” protests after a day of commotion.
Her attack came as a Tory MP expressed concern that growing resentment over the high cost of gas would result in blockades modeled after Canada’s “Freedom Convoys” that would target London.
An experienced organizer of the fuel protests that rendered Britain powerless in 2000 is assisting in the planning of what is being dubbed a “summer of discontent.”
Under laws that went into effect earlier this year, protesters who block traffic risk harsher penalties.
They were intended to counter demonstrations by organizations like Extinction Rebellion, but they would also apply to those who advocate for more fuel.
Six months in prison and an unlimited fine now constitute the maximum punishment for “wilful blockage of a highway.” In the past, the offense simply carried a small fine.
According to a Home Office source, yesterday night, “we have granted the police a wealth of tools to deal with disruptive and damaging protests, including jail and unlimited fines for individuals blocking a highway — measures which inflict more agony on those affected by rising costs.”
The Home Secretary would support and urge the police to exercise all of their legal authority.
People need to be moved on by forces.
It doesn’t matter whether you support the cause or not because these protests are preventing people from traveling to and from work and other essential destinations.
Additional developments
Yesterday, environmentalists from the anti-fossil fuel organization Just Stop Oil pasted themselves to the frame of Constable’s The Hay Wain and covered it with a counterfeit version of the painting.
A petition seeking for a reduction in fuel taxes received more than 300,000 signatures.
After the former football player commended eco protestors who stormed the track at Silverstone during Sunday’s grand race, Gary Lineker was criticized by F1 pundit Martin Brundle.
Fears of a meltdown during the school summer break were stoked as lines snaked into parking lots and outside airport terminal buildings, disrupting air travelers once more.
Yesterday, thousands of drivers encountered significant delays as demonstrators organized go-slow convoys on busy roads and demanded an immediate reduction in fuel taxes.
Drivers gathered at designated meeting places early yesterday morning as part of a social media campaign, with the Prince of Wales Bridge between England and South Wales closed in both directions.
It led Bristol Airport to urge passengers to give themselves more time for their journeys.
Separate protest convoys also caused delays on the M54 in Shropshire and the M62 in West Yorkshire, as well as targeting a Tesco gas station in Shepton Mallet, Somerset.
Farmer Andrew Spence, whose demonstrations 22 years ago targeted a Shell plant in Jarrow, South Tyneside, claimed that yesterday’s action was “just the start of things to come.”
We’re predicting a summer of unhappiness, and this is only going to get worse, he continued.
The introduction of websites like Facebook, according to Mr. Spence, 55, of County Durham, has significantly changed his ability to mobilize individuals who are outraged by rising petrol prices.
People “rise up and take notice” because of social media, he claimed. “That’s something we lacked in the early 2000s,” someone said.
Refinery blockades, according to Mr. Spence, “have not been ruled out.” The rising tide of ire should not be ignored, according to Conservative MP Robert Halfon, who urged Chancellor Rishi Sunak to go beyond the 5p per litre drop in fuel price that was implemented in March’s spring statement.
I don’t want anything that interferes with people’s daily life, he declared.
However, I’m concerned that this is a sign of even more protests to come in the UK. Truck drivers will descend on Parliament in a situation akin to that in Canada if we’re not careful.
In February, the so-called Freedom Convoy in Canada expanded from protests against Covid vaccination regulations to a larger campaign and a three-week occupation of Ottawa, the nation’s capital.
Welder Richard Dite, who took part in the protest in South Wales yesterday, risked six points on his license and a £200 fine by filming the procession on his phone while operating his truck.
The 44-year-old man shouting “give us our nation back” was in one of roughly six automobiles in a brief procession on the M4.
I’m about to store my equipment in the shed, he remarked. “I’d be happier on welfare,” you say.
The protests occur at a time when, according to the RAC, fuel duty and VAT account for 85p of the average price of £1.91 for a litre of unleaded gasoline.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, problems with the world’s oil supply have caused a wave of price increases.