Extinction Rebellion to block UK oil refineries and cause more energy misery despite Ukraine-Russia war chaos

Extinction Rebellion has announced plans to block major UK oil refineries in April.

The direct action group said it intends to “stop the harm at the source” as part of its campaign to force the Government to stop the fossil fuel economy.

The protest group Just Stop Oil will also be blocking refineries across the UK, with other groups to be confirmed.

It comes as experts warned of the impact new sanctions on Russian oil as gas imports could have on household bills in the UK.

A spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion said: “We are calling on protest groups, NGOs and individuals to join us and take a stand to stop fossil fuels once and for all. Now is the time, this is the moment.”

Clare Farrell, Extinction Rebellion co-founder, said: “Oil refineries are symbolic of continued extraction and profit for a small group of very wealthy companies at the expense of everyone else.

“We burn them, pollute our cities, poison ourselves and our children whilst committing to climate breakdown. It’s no wonder the entire environmental movement is focusing on ending fossil fuels and the death they cause. The writing is on the wall, and we are out of time.

“We face an ongoing cost of living crisis with fossil fuel companies making record-breaking massive profits.

“We have failed to insulate homes or make progress on energy efficiency here in the UK and experts are expecting an especially difficult winter later this year unless bold effort is made in the name of protecting the vulnerable and the poor.

“Boris Johnson arguing for a ‘climate change pass’ involving new fossil fuel development sidelines the decades of failure to prevent millions of deaths from pollution and climate breakdown by building in decades more failure and more millions of deaths. We need to decarbonise and to do so as fast as possible.”

Extinction Rebellion sent a letter to the Government about its April plans, saying: “Every day the UK Government fails to act makes our common future more bleak, our prospects more terrifying.”

Exact locations of the planned protests are yet to be made public.

Ministers are said to be considering steps to rethink the Government’s approach to fracking, as substitute fuel sources are lined up following Vladimir Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine.

Amid concerns over soaring energy costs, it was understood two Cuadrilla sites in Lancashire may be handed over to the Royal Geographical Society rather than being concreted over.

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