#InjunctionInjustice
The growing threat to civil liberties from injunctions against oil and gas protesters
Since 2017 there has been a rapidly growing use of civil injunctions by oil and gas companies, brought against citizens and communities opposed to their extraction activity in England.
Such injunctions now already cover areas in Lancashire, Surrey, Nottinghamshire, Sussex, South and North Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Cheshire and Hampshire, with more anticipated.
In March 2019 the Court of Appeal will hear a challenge to an injunction secured by chemicals giant INEOS. This timely event will examine the threat that these injunctions pose to the civil liberties of local residents, campaigners and community groups opposed to oil and gas extraction.
We would like to say a huge thank you to all those who turned up to our meeting in Westminster. We managed to bring together NGOs (Liberty, FOE, Greenpeace, etc.) with some of the country's top human rights lawyers, cross-party representation and campaign groups (XR, Talk Fracking and numerous Frack Free community groups).
Political representation came from The Right Honorable Norman Lamb and Sir Kevin Barron as sponsors with attendees Labour, LibDems, The Green Party, The SNP and the Conservatives.
What this showed is that there is considerable and widespread concern of these injunctions used to intimidate people opposed to fracking.
What's more, the alliance in opposition to fracking we are building has real foundations.
The meeting explored their chilling effect
on legitimate, peaceful protest and free speech, and the legal case against their use. It heard from leading legal counsel representing defendants in these cases, the defendants themselves and campaigners concerned about the threat they pose to human rights.
Speakers:
Norman Lamb MP
Stephanie Harrison QC, Garden Court Chambers
Joe Corrie, defendant in INEOS injunction case
Vicki Elcoate, defendant in UKOG injunction case
Dave Timms, Head of Political Affairs, Friends of the Earth
Rosie Brighouse, lawyer, Liberty
Sir Kevin Barron
With contributions from
Shami Chakrabarti, Mothiur Rahman, Paul Powesland, Greenpeace and campaigners from across the Frack Free Network
We can't do this work without support from the FFU network. You know who you are!
All of you are exceptional in your dedication to stop fracking.
Huge thanks to our co sponsors: Talk Fracking and Joe for speaking, Dave Timms and Rosemary at FoE and Emma at Garden Court Chambers for helping to pull this together.
#fracking #INEOSvThePeople #InjunctionInjustice
Press coverage: https://drillordrop.com/2019/01/16/campaigners-bring-double-challenge-to-draconian-onshore-oil-and-gas-protest-injunctions/