Unprecedented Sentences for Environmental Protesters Raise Concerns

On 18th July 2024, Judge Christopher Hehir sentenced five defendants convicted of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance for coordinating direct action protests on the M25 over four days in November 2022.

One defendant received a sentence of 5 years; the other four received sentences of 4 years imprisonment.

The case has ignited significant debate and divided public opinion.

Michel Forst, the UN’s special rapporteur on environmental defenders, expressed strong disapproval

“Today is a dark day for peaceful environmental protest. This sentence should shock the conscience of any member of the public. It should also put all of us on high alert on the state of civic rights and freedoms in the United Kingdom. Rulings like today’s set a very dangerous precedent, not just for environmental protest but any form of peaceful protest that may, at one point or another, not align with the interests of the government of the day.”

Amy Cameron, Greenpeace UK’s programme director, added:

“What sort of country locks people away for years for planning a peaceful demonstration, let alone for talking about it on a Zoom call? We’re giving a free hand to the polluting elite robbing us of a habitable planet while jailing those who’re trying to stop them – it makes no sense. These sentences are not a one-off anomaly but the culmination of years of repressive legislation, overblown government rhetoric and a concerted assault on the right of juries to deliberate according to their conscience. It’s part of the mess the Labour government has inherited from its predecessor, and they must fix it by giving back to people the right to protest that’s been slowly being taken away from them.”

On the other hand, supporters of the stringent sentences highlighted the significant disruption caused by the motorway protests, citing missed flights, holidays, funerals, school mock exams, hospital appointments for cancer patients, lost income, and delayed food deliveries to hospitals.

While heavy sentencing for disruptive protests is not new, these are believed to be the longest sentences handed down to date, clearly intended as a deterrent. Whether this approach will be effective remains to be seen. An appeal is almost inevitable, offering the Court of Appeal an opportunity to consider this case carefully and set the tone for similar cases in the future.

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