Police fear Just Stop Oil protests ‘will not stop’

It comes after activists vowed they will ‘not stop until the Government agrees to end new fossil fuel consents’. The group’s pledge came as furious motorists took the law into their own hands and dragged protestors from roads in the capital.Scotland Yard Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist criticised Just Stop Oil for failing to forewarn the Met about where demos were taking place so emergency vehicles could be rerouted and the disruption minimised.Mr Twist said that by today 8,000 police officer shifts would have been expended on policing the month-long protests and about 200 officers a day were being diverted from their crime-fighting duties.He called on the group to pre-advise the force of its activities so it could make better use of police officer time.He added: ‘I am worried it is going to continue into November. The public are sick of it and just want to go about their lives without serious disruption.’I would ask them to engage with us so protests can take place with minimum disruption.’ A member of the public removes a banner from Just Stop Oil activists that blocked Blackfriars Road (Image: GETTY)Today the group said 61 supporters walked into several parts of London and sat down holding banners, causing traffic delays, at 12pm.Some of the scenes turned ugly with members of the public dragging activists away but no police were initially in sight in video footage online.One driver was seen to accelerate his truck towards them before stopping while another driver mounted the road to get around them.One said: ‘We’ve asked you nicely, you are doing the wrong thing by blocking innocent people going about their business.’Can you please move before we pick you up and move you?’We can’t help you, go to Westminster.’The Met tweeted: ‘Police were immediately on scene and a number of arrests have been made. Protesters have used ‘lock-ons’ and glued themselves to the road.’Mr Twist said: ‘It does not take terribly long to unglue people and we are getting very good at it but some people are locked on with metal bars and chains and that takes more time to cut them off and it must be done sensitively and carefully.’Asked if protests would continue into November, a Just Stop Oil spokeswoman said: ‘We will continue until the Government agrees to end new oil and gas licences and consents.’Against a background of an increasingly authoritarian government and its criminalisation of all forms of protest, we have taken the decision not to pre-liaise our actions with the police.’