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Greenpeace in front of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's veiled house: "Oil profits or our future?"
Photo: Luca Marino / AP
It was a sensational protest: several Greenpeace activists clad the home of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in black. Now the consequences for the environmental organization follow: The British government is suspending cooperation.
"Of course, we believe that people who are accused of breaking the law should not be at the table in discussions with the government," said a spokesman for Sunak. It is not unusual for the Ministry of the Environment to talk to Greenpeace. "But given their actions and last week's arrests, we clearly don't think it's appropriate to involve them."
Last week, four activists from Greenpeace covered Sunak's private home in his northern English constituency with black cloth in protest against new licenses for oil and gas production in the North Sea. To do this, they had climbed onto the roof of the listed building. Sunak and his family were on holiday at the time of the incident. The police temporarily detained a total of five people.
Controversy over "bunker mentality"
Greenpeace stressed that the organization had ensured that no one was at home during the protest. After the action, new demands arose to better protect the privacy of politicians.
Greenpeace accused the government of a "bunker mentality." Burying one's head in the sand will not let the climate crisis pass," said Will McCallum, co-head of the organization in the UK. Precisely because the government has effectively slammed the door on civil society groups like Greenpeace and ignored warnings from the United Nations, its own advisers and the International Energy Agency, we must protest the way we do."
mrc/dpa