Wind Plant Protesters Superglue themselves to Whitehall

01/02

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Protesters superglue themselves to the entrance of the Department of Energy and Climate Change in central London over the closure of the Vestas wind plant. Press Release from Workers Climate Action: Sophie Lewis 07989873549 Ed Maltby 07775763750 Martin Thomas 07950 978 083 Protestors against Vestas closure write ‘SAVE VESTAS’ with their bodies in Whitehall As workers are besieged by riot police on the Isle of Wight for occupying this country’s only wind turbine factory, Vestas, a hundred demonstrators yesterday, Wednesday 22nd at 18:00, demanded the Department for Energy and Climate Change in London take action to prevent the plant from being closed. Ed Miliband’s department has promised 400,000 green-collar jobs. Meanwhile, Vestas blades was making enormous profits, but couldn’t sell due to British Nimbyism blocking planning permission for wind farms. The plant is planned to close Monday (27th) at a time when the UK has committed to 80% carbon cuts by 2050 and endorses wind power in its Sustainable Energy bill. Workers Climate Action initiated the campaign on the Isle of Wight which has now snowballed into a full blown occupation. The activists have nation-wide support and have been publicly backed by the leader of the Green Party, Caroline Lucas, as well as a coalition of labour and union representatives. The protestors heckled Simon Hughes MP, demanding the government step in to open up the UK to wind power. WCA believes that, “As we move towards the UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen in December, governments are going to have to show more than empty promises – we need action, and we need it now.” As Sophie Lewis, a Green Party member from Workers Climate Action, maintained at the London demo today: “We demand that the Department for Energy and Climate Change get a grip and cease pandering to the firm throwing 600 green-collar workers and their families onto the scrap heap. This shouldn’t be about the market, or its friendliness to wind farms. We need to force that friendliness a little. This is about political will. 75% of the population supports wind power.” As Richard Braude from Climate Camp put it, “if the money could be found to bail out the banks, it can surely be raised to get green industry going the way government’s pretending it is. These are jobs worth fighting for, and jobs worth improving too. A green economy is a chance for creating a better, socially just world – at the moment all we’re seeing is business as usual.”

02/02

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UK, London - 03.08.09. Protesters superglue themselves to the entrance of the dept. of energy and climate change in central London over the closure of the Vestas wind plant.

Protesters superglue themselves to the entrance of the Department of Energy and Climate Change in central London over the closure of the Vestas wind plant.

Press Release from Workers Climate Action:

Sophie Lewis 07989873549
Ed Maltby 07775763750
Martin Thomas 07950 978 083

Protestors against Vestas closure write ‘SAVE VESTAS’ with their bodies in Whitehall

As workers are besieged by riot police on the Isle of Wight for occupying this country’s only wind turbine factory, Vestas, a hundred demonstrators yesterday, Wednesday 22nd at 18:00, demanded the Department for Energy and Climate Change in London take action to prevent the plant from being closed.

Ed Miliband’s department has promised 400,000 green-collar jobs. Meanwhile, Vestas blades was making enormous profits, but couldn’t sell due to British Nimbyism blocking planning permission for wind farms. The plant is planned to close Monday (27th) at a time when the UK has committed to 80% carbon cuts by 2050 and endorses wind power in its Sustainable Energy bill.

Workers Climate Action initiated the campaign on the Isle of Wight which has now snowballed into a full blown occupation. The activists have nation-wide support and have been publicly backed by the leader of the Green Party, Caroline Lucas, as well as a coalition of labour and union representatives.

The protestors heckled Simon Hughes MP, demanding the government step in to open up the UK to wind power. WCA believes that, “As we move towards the UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen in December, governments are going to have to show more than empty promises – we need action, and we need it now.”

As Sophie Lewis, a Green Party member from Workers Climate Action, maintained at the London demo today: “We demand that the Department for Energy and Climate Change get a grip and cease pandering to the firm throwing 600 green-collar workers and their families onto the scrap heap. This shouldn’t be about the market, or its friendliness to wind farms. We need to force that friendliness a little. This is about political will. 75% of the population supports wind power.”

As Richard Bernard from Climate Camp put it, “if the money could be found to bail out the banks, it can surely be raised to get green industry going the way government’s pretending it is. These are jobs worth fighting for, and jobs worth improving too. A green economy is a chance for creating a better, socially just world – at the moment all we’re seeing is business as usual.”