The front of the UK’s Treasury building has been sprayed with fake blood in an environmental protest by Extinction Rebellion on Thursday.
On Thursday morning, the Extinction Rebellion group revealed a banner that urged the government to “stop funding climate death”, before attempting to spray the building with the blood from an old fire engine that the group are believed to have purchased.
The hose appeared to burst, causing the protesters to drop it, spraying 1800 litres of fake blood onto the pavement, with only a small amount hitting the treasury building itself.
The protesters claimed that they were “highlighting the inconsistency between the UK government’s insistence that the UK is a world leader in tackling climate breakdown, and the vast sums it pours into fossil fuel exploration.
Extinction Rebellion has led large protests throughout the UK in recent months, including the blocking of streets in central London as they demand action be taken on climate change.
This led to the commitment by the UK government to be carbon neutral by the middle of the century, although Extinction Rebellion activists want quicker action to be taken.
The Uk has made significant steps in recent years towards moving energy production away from fossil fuels, instead investing in solar and wind energy, that now accounts for almost half of Britain’s energy production.
Images of the protest today show that four protesters parked the fire engine outside of the 100-year-old Treasury building before attempting to spray the liquid at it. After just a few seconds they lose control of the hose, sending the liquid across the pavement, whilst the protesters desperately attempt to gather the spray.
Many politicians came out to condemn the protest, with Conservative Party Chairman James Cleverly stating “stupid things like this, totally undermine the debate put forward by people who genuinely want to address climate change”.
It is believed that those responsible have been arrested, with Extinction Rebellion congratulating their members on twitter, offering special stickers in honour of those who were arrested.
