Police arrest airport campaigners

Updated 14.26 Thu Aug 16 2007

Keywords: climate change, Biggin Hill

Police have arrested ten climate change campaigners at Biggin Hill Airport in Kent.

Some of the protesters had chained themselves to the main gates of the airport and were removed by by specialist officers.

"This is a protest against the superrich with their own planes who are putting two fingers up to attempts by the rest of us who try to cut our carbon emissions" - Richard George

The group said they were protesting against the growth in the number of people using private jets as opposed to scheduled flights.

Richard George, 26, spokesman for the group, said the protest was in no way a "dry run" for what is planned at the weekend for Heathrow.

"This is a protest against the super-rich with their own planes who are putting two fingers up to attempts by the rest of us who try to cut our carbon emissions by saying they will not only continue to fly, but they will fly in the most carbon inefficient way possible," he said.

Mr George said the group had chained themselves to the airport's only passenger entrance and were lying across the only access road.

"It is all very peaceful. There has been no confrontation. The people who have turned up for work have been met by representatives of the airport and have been driven away presumably to a staff entrance," he said.

"The growth in private aviation scandalously mocks the efforts of people who try to reduce their carbon footprint," he added.

Mr George stressed that the group had no plans to prevent passengers flying out of Heathrow at the weekend.

"This is not the sort of thing that will be happening at Heathrow. We have no intention of shutting down Heathrow. That is a very different situation," he said.

The Metropolitan Police, who have been on patrol at the climate change camp at Heathrow, said they were aware of a group of protesters at Biggin Hill and were attending the scene.

A spokesman for Hampshire Police said climate change demonstrators were also staging a protest at Farnborough Airport but the airport remained open.

"We have a similar protest taking place at Farnborough Airport involving 18 peaceful protesters at the main entrance to the airport.

"They are causing minimum disruption to the services," he said.