A Just Stop Oil protester has admitted that he would be ‘furious’ if he was forced to miss a funeral or appointment because of group’s road-blocking protests.
Alex de Koning said that he was sorry to members of the public who have had their lives disrupted by their protests — but added that they should question why the activists are doing this.
Today a grieving man blasted Just Stop Oil zealots whose stunt on Britain’s busiest motorway this week caused him to miss his father’s funeral.
Tony Bambury was travelling with his family to the funeral just off the A13 near Pitsea from his home in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire on Monday when he discovered that the eco-mob had blocked parts of the M25 in protest – hugely disrupting his journey.
He was forced to divert off the motorway towards St Albans to find an alternative route to Essex, but got caught up in long queues of traffic.
Just Stop Oil activist Alex de Koning admitted that he would be ‘furious’ if he was forced to miss a funeral or appointment because of group’s road-blocking protests
Speaking to GB News’ Bev Turner (pictured) Mr de Koning said: I’m really sorry to anyone who has been caught up in this and it’s terrible that this is happening’
Tony Bambury was travelling with his family to the funeral just off the A13 near Pitsea from his home in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire on Monday when he discovered that the eco-mob had blocked parts of the M25 in protest
‘These people have forced me not to go to my own father’s funeral by their actions and it’s not like I can get a second chance at this,’ Mr Bambury said. Pictured, his late father
Describing the heartrending moment he had to call his grief-stricken mother that he would not be able to get to the funeral on time, Mr Bambury told ITV Meridian: ‘I called my Mum, who’s 79, and was very upset as you can imagine. My brother and his family were there, I wanted to be there, and I had a eulogy that I was going to say about my father.
‘These people have forced me not to go to my own father’s funeral by their actions and it’s not like I can get a second chance at this. I’ll never forget what they’ve done and I’ll never forgive what they have done.’
Speaking to GB News, Mr de Koning said: I’m really sorry to anyone who has been caught up in this and it’s terrible that this is happening.’
When pressed about the impact of the protests on Brits such as Mr Bambury, who missed his father’s funeral due to the traffic chaos, Mr de Koning added: ‘This is terrible, I’d be furious too if I was caught up in that traffic, if I missed a funeral or an appointment.
‘But the real question people have to be asking is: Why are people taking actions like this?’
Susanna Reid told Sam Johnson: ‘You don’t watch, and you don’t care’
It comes as Good Morning Britain‘s Susanna Reid launched a withering attack on a Just Stop Oil spokesperson this morning after the group halted traffic on the M25 again by climbing gantries on multiple junctions.
Spokesperson for the group Sam Johnson told the programme: ‘The media always want to talk about the what. We need to talk about the why.’
But Susanna Reid argued: ‘The problem is people are distracted by what you are doing. It’s become the distraction.’
Co-host Ed Balls added: ‘People hate you. [They think] the campaign is not a good way to proceed.’
Susanna asked: ‘Have you watched this programme?’ – to which Mr Johnson told her ‘No’.
It was at this point Susanna began her blistering shut down. She told him: ‘So you don’t have any idea what this programme does.
Susanna was presenting the programme alongside a former Labour MP Ed Balls
Mr Johnson told Good Morning Britain viewers that the media only likes to talk about what the group is doing, and not why
‘You have no idea who our meteorologist is, Laura Tobin, who’s one of the most outspoken people on climate change, who has written an entire book talking about what we each need to do as individuals on climate change.
‘And you have the audacity to come on here and say we are completely distracted and we’re not talking about the issues?
‘We’re talking about them every single morning, son.
‘You’re not getting people on your side including people who would naturally be sympathetic to your cause.
‘Sorry, I’m going to end it there because you’ve already said you don’t watch and you don’t care.’
Throughout Susanna’s comments, the other presenters in the studio, including Laura Tobin, could be seen nodding in agreement.
But Mr Johnson repeatedly tried to interrupt the presenter, saying: ‘Susanna. Susanna. Susanna.’
Social media users were left divided by the interview, with many praising Susanna’s ‘brilliant’ actions – while others accused the presenter of ‘bullying’.
It came after a morning of traffic chaos in which a Just Stop Oil protestor caused a lorry crash and left a police outrider hurt on the M25 today.
Swathes of Britain’s busiest motorway were shut for the third day running with one eco-extremist locking themselves to a gantry in a new escalation of hostilities.
One eco-zealot caused chaos between junction 26 and junction 27 in Essex after she was spotted climbing a pole by the road with one witness claiming it was lucky nobody was killed.
Two lorries crashed into each other under a gantry with a police officer apparently knocked off a motorcycle in the chaos. A picture from the scene showed the HGVs crumpled together and the motorcycle on the hard shoulder.
One witness told MailOnline: ‘I was driving along at around 6.21am when a woman started climbing a concrete pole. A police officer on a motorbike swerved to try to stop her and collided with a lorry, which then crashed into another lorry. They arrested the woman before she could get on to the gantry’.
He added: ‘Someone’s going to die soon’, praising the lorry drivers and the police officer’s safety gear for preventing a tragedy today.
The incident came on a third day of action on the M25, which appears to be its worst so far, where police failed to stop at least ten protesters causing closures at junction 4, junction 7 and 8, junctions 8 to 9, junctions 13 to 14, junction 22, junction 23 to junction 27 and junction 30 of the M25.
A lorry crash on the M25 between junction 27 and junction 28 today after a protester ran into the road. A police officer was also injured
A police outrider was knocked off his bike and two lorries crashed when a Just Stop Oil protester tried to climb a gantry on the M25
Police are said to be patrolling the motorway in a bid to stop protesters succeeding, but have failed so far with one protester locking themselves to the gantry in an escalation of previous protests.
Scotland Yard said a person locked themselves on to an overhead gantry near Junctions 24 and 25 this morning.
The force said: ‘Locks add more complexity for our removal teams and the overall process becomes longer. We have had to bring in specialist equipment for this removal, including a JCB. Officers will endeavour to work swiftly and safely to open as quickly as possible.’
Officers appear to have been outfoxed by activists turning up at 6.30am – 30 minutes earlier than on Monday and yesterday.
Just Stop Oil was joined by activists from Animal Rebellion, a group campaigning for ‘a plant-based food system’, with two of their members turning up at junction 13.
The number of protesters on the road again is deeply embarrassing for the police, who have been urged to get a grip.
The Met said this morning that they were ‘ready to respond to any protest’ in a tweet at 6.56am – sent 26 minutes after the protesters were already in the road.
Following this morning’s events, social media users were torn by Susanna Reid’s takedown of Mr Johnson.
Samuel Johnson, 29, from Suffolk, was arrested in September after Just Stop Oil activists occupied a tunnel under the road leading to an oil refinery for 13 days.
He has been charged and awaits trial.
