Just oil protesters are right

The Just Oil group have been causing a stir, with their direct action interventions, from Wimbledon and the Test match to the Chelsea Flower Show. The target has always been those with links to fossil fuel industry. There has been outrage expressed, often by the group of politicians who seem completely oblivious to the threat posed by climate change. What the protesters are saying is that this is an emergency, demanding a proportionate response. That response would be of the type seen for the COVID pandemic. It is no use just putting climate change on the back burner, waiting till a day when the actions required can be afforded. The evidence of the devastation being caused by the climate crisis is all around us. The soaring temperatures, droughts and floods. Those connected to nature, growing food and managing the land see the impact. Anyone who has a garden must be aware of the rapidity of change. A creaking infrastructure will require much investment to cope. Thousands are dying, every year, due to heat waves and floods. People are on the move. This government maybe fixated by the so called small boats but they ain't seen nothing yet. Watch out for the mass migrations that will come from the climate crisis. The protesters are right to take actions that highlight these issues. This head in the sand denial of so many people - not least the politicians - cannot go on. The British government having at one point been at the forefront of those seeking to tackle the causes, has now slammed into reverse. It has issued new oil and gas licences, as well as opening new coal mines. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak does not include climate as one of his five priorities for action. The government continues with the stubborn and ridiculous policy of blocking wind turbines on land. There should be a full scale switch to renewable energy sources. All new properties should be zero carbon, with a major program to retrofit older property. This was set to pass into law, until scrapped by David Cameron's government in 2015. The electric vehicles industry is another in need of heavy subsidy to bring down the price and build an adequate infrastructure. If the crisis were being taken seriously this would happen - not leaving it to the market to slowly respond. At the moment, politicians maybe listening but they are really not hearing what the likes of Just Oil are saying. It is the failure to respond that causes the protesters to move to more direct ways of protest. Their actions are certainly getting people's attention. Politicians across the spectrum from national to local government need to take this climate crisis seriously, give it the priority it deserves. We cannot just go on with business as usual. Nor is it any answer to simply criminalise the protesters whilst ignoring their message. We need urgent action now - not when it is too late for all of us. The protest must go on.