Greenpeace protesters drape giant oil

Activists enter grounds of Yorkshire home in protest against prime minister’s pledge to ‘max out’ UK oil and gas reserves

Greenpeace activists have climbed on the roof of Rishi Sunak’s North Yorkshire mansion and draped it in oily-black fabric to “drive home the dangerous consequences of a new drilling frenzy”.

The climbers managed to get on top of Sunak’s empty constituency home in Kirby Sigston, near Northallerton, on Thursday morning, after the prime minister flew to California on holiday.

The deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden, left in charge of the country in Sunak’s absence, told the protesters to “stop the stupid stunts”.

After reaching the top of Kirby Sigston Manor using ladders and climbing ropes at around 6am, activists unfolded 200 sq metres of oil-black fabric to cover a whole side of the property. At the same time, two other activists unfurled a banner stating: “Rishi Sunak – Oil Profits or Our Future?” across the grass in front of the house.

Talking outside the house on Thursday, Greenpeace campaigner Philip Evans said the activists had made sure the prime minister’s family were not going to be at home before carrying out the protest, which is a response to Sunak saying he would “max out” oil and gas in the North Sea.

“It’s an incredibly dangerous thing to be saying and in general there’s been an attack on the climate since the Uxbridge byelection,” said Evans. “Rishi Sunak’s government has been the worst government we’ve had on climate.”

Evans said the group had knocked on the door when they arrived and announced: “This is a peaceful protest.” He said there was no answer.

It was not intrusive to target someone’s home when they were away, said Evans: “This is the prime minister. He is the one that was standing in Scotland going to drill for every last drop of oil while the world is burning. He is personally responsible for that decision and we’re all going to be paying a high price if he goes through with it. It is personal.”

This week the prime minister pledged to “max out” the UK’s oil and gas reserves as he announced more than 100 new licences for North Sea drilling, which experts said could be catastrophic for the climate. But in 2021, the International Energy Agency said there could be no new oil, gas and coal developments if the world was to reach net zero by 2050.

Greenpeace said the protest aimed to stop Sunak from approving Rosebank, the biggest undeveloped oil and gas field in the North Sea, the operations of which would be enough to exceed the UK’s carbon budgets.

Officers from North Yorkshire police were on site on Thursday morning as the stand-off continued.

Peter Walker, former deputy chief constable of North Yorkshire police, said the stunt was “a major breach of security”.

Talking to LBC, the retired officer said he was “absolutely astonished” that Greenpeace managed to gain access. “This time it happens to be Greenpeace. What if it had been a terrorist organisation leaving an explosive device?” he asked.

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Calling for an investigation into what happened, Walker said: “I really think this is a major failing, and it grieves me to say that because it is my former police force.”

A No 10 source said: “We make no apology for taking the right approach to ensure our energy security, using the resources we have here at home so we are never reliant on aggressors like [Vladimir] Putin for our energy,” the source said. “We are also investing in renewables and our approach supports 1,000s of British jobs.”

Speaking on a visit to Able Seaton Port in Hartlepool, Dowden said: “I think what most people would say is: ‘Can you stop the stupid stunts?’ Actually what they want to see from government is action.

“That’s what you’re seeing here today – the world’s largest offshore windfarm being built right here, creating jobs.

“But at the same time we’re going to need in the coming decades oil and gas as part of our energy mix. The question is do we produce it here, where we get more tax, we create more jobs, or do we do what the Labour [party] and others say, which is: ‘No more investment in our North Sea oil and gas.’”

Greenpeace’s Evans added: “We desperately need our prime minister to be a climate leader, not a climate arsonist. Just as wildfires and floods wreck homes and lives around the world, Sunak is committing to a massive expansion of oil and gas drilling.

“He seems quite happy to hold a blowtorch to the planet if he can score a few political points by sowing division around climate in this country. This is cynical beyond belief.”