Just Stop Oil will be remembered by history as the heroes

The prison sentences recently handed down to the Just Stop Oil protesters, whose actions created significant disruption to people’s lives, were condemned by Chris Packhamas “judicial thuggery”. Packham also described climate change as the most serious existential threat ever faced by the human species, with no shortage of scientific evidence to support this claim.

Disruption to our lives may be the least of our concerns unless the man-made causes of climate change are addressed far more vigorously. The protesters were driven by a sense of urgent desperation, believing that only direct action would impel decision-makers to act with the speed and conviction necessary to save this planet from an unprecedented disaster.

The majority of us must accept some responsibility for this situation because of our own failure to take the threat seriously and believe that it willif left unchecked, endanger future generations. How many of us have changed our lives to reduce significantly our environmental footprint? The truth is that some have, but most have not.

We are reluctant to alter the lives we take for granted, unwilling to make big sacrifices and push to the back of our minds theconsequences of failing to act. We take comfort from the herd, continuing largely as we always have. Governments must be far tougher. We must be helped, but also compelled, to change our lives and to understand why.

While many condemn the protesters’ actions, those now residing at His Majesty’s pleasure may ultimately go down in history as heroes. Meanwhile, the rest of us need to wake up.

David Platts

Newark

The UK is currently responsible for about 1 per cent of the world’s CO2 emissions, whereas China emits about 29 per cent. If Just Stop Oil is