Thursday 18 April 2019
“I’m extremely concerned by reports that climate protestors are planning to disrupt Heathrow Airport tomorrow. This is extremely dangerous, illegal and is putting an unacceptable toll on our police force and our city.
“I support the democratic right to peaceful protest and agree that governments need to do more to tackle climate change, but these protests are now putting Londoners’ safety at risk.
“More than 1,000 police officers have been responding to the protests across London this week and more than 460 people have been arrested. The operation is having a significant impact on the police, with rest days and leave being cancelled for officers. The Met have requested mutual aid support from other police forces to support their operation at Heathrow.
“Our hard-working police officers have my full backing in their efforts to keep Londoners safe and to keep our city running, but I am now very concerned about the impact the protests will have on our ability to tackle issues like violent crime if they continue any longer.
“I urge everyone to co-operate with the police and comply with their instructions by attending Marble Arch as part of the legal protest – Marble Arch is the designated place that anyone wanting to protest should attend. If protestors don’t, and break the law, the police will have no choice but to make arrests.