UPDATE: Extinction Rebellion To Hold Two-Day Protest At Lewes' County Hall

Climate activists Extinction Rebellion have announced that, due to extreme heat warnings, the two day vigil and fast will now only be on Monday from 8-10am and Wednesday from 8-9.45am.

They had originally planned to hold the protest outside the Lewes offices of East Sussex County Council from 9am on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week (July 19th and 20th).

Tuesday is now completely cancelled, with vigil hours cut down to just a couple of hours on Monday and Wednesday mornings.

They have also advised protestors that only those living in lewes should attend, after rail companies advised of severe delays on the lines during the hot weather.

In an email sent to selected people in the district, a spokesperson for the climate campaigners, also known as XR, stated the following with regard to the reasons for their protest:

ESCC declared a climate emergency in 2019, but the Council’s own data shows that it has since done very little to lower its own carbon footprint – and has taken no meaningful actions to reduce emissions or stop ecological damage across the County.  

XR accuses ESCC of “passing the buck, excuses and wishful thinking”, and is demanding the Council “steps up, shows leadership, and involves and inspires residents for the biggest task in human history.”  

This latest wave of actions comes hard on the heels of protests at County Hall on 12^th July, where local group Divest East Sussex accused the Council of continuing to invest its pension funds in fossil fuels. But XR’s demands are much broader.  

Mark Engineer, a University worker from Barcombe, near Lewes, said:

“Of course East Sussex County Council should stop investing in fossil fuels. But they need to do much more than that. 

“Quite honestly, we’re fed up with their inaction. They declared a climate emergency in 2019. Since then, as emissions and sea levels have continued to rise, extreme weather events have escalated, and species numbers have continued to plummet, they have done practically nothing. They are fiddling while our home burns. 

“Put simply, they are just not cutting it.” 

Grace Lally, a childcare worker from Hastings said: 

“The Council talks about ‘net zero by 2050’. This all sounds very grand, but it’s far too far into the future. It means the climate emergency seems comfortably far off, and lets them kick the can further down the road. We need action right now. 

“In any case, their ‘plan’ relates only to reducing the emissions created by their own activities, which account for around 3 per cent of the total emissions in East Sussex. It basically amounts to little more than changing bulbs in street lamps, and upgrading heating systems in some of their buildings. But even if they did the things they’ve talked about, they’d still be nowhere near achieving their target – they are relying on action from central Government, and we all know how that’s going.  

“There’s no talk of how they’ll reduce emissions in East Sussex itself. No plans around transport or renewable energy, increasing sustainable food or making buildings greener. They won’t divest their pensions from fossil fuels. No ideas, no funding, no ambition. 

“This is not Extinction Rebellion saying this. The Council’s own data shows how it’s failing.”  

ESCC should see the protests as an opportunity, say XR. Noa Lachman, an opera singer and company director from Eastbourne said: 

“The Council’s powers and budget are limited. We get that. But they need to push the limits of what they can do rather than focussing on what they can’t. The past week has shown how our weather patterns are getting more extreme. And it’s going to get worse. This is the biggest crisis humanity has ever faced, and our leaders need to use all their energy and imagination to tackle it. And they need to do it now. 

“They are failing us when we need them most.” 

 XR is challenging the Council to listen to and act on the ideas of their voters. Lewes based musician Dirk Campbell explained:

“We’re inviting them to listen to ideas from their residents, to work constructively with other parties, to think creatively, to lead and to use their influence in whatever way they can think of to inspire all of us in this mammoth challenge. They cannot stand by and make excuses any longer. 

 “And we’re inviting residents from across the County to come and join us in Lewes on the 19^th and 20^th July – to discuss and develop ideas for cutting carbon emissions, to share your ideas and energy, to make your voices heard. 

 “Just imagine what we could all achieve, if we worked together!”  

 “Residents who can’t make it should email ideas to justnotcuttingit@proton.me “ 

In response to the protest, an East Sussex County Council spokesperson said:

“We have committed to become a carbon neutral authority by 2050 at the latest and have a comprehensive Climate Emergency Action Plan which sets out our priority actions and is something we take seriously. The council has recently committed to invest an additional £9.9 million to support the efforts to cut carbon emissions.

“Becoming carbon neutral is not something that can happen overnight but we have made huge strides in recent years. Significant changes to our buildings and the way we work have helped us more than halve our carbon emissions since 2008 – equivalent to the annual energy use of more than 7,000 residents.

“We have switched to a 100 per cent renewable electricity tariff for streetlights and council buildings, installed thousands of solar panels on the roofs of council buildings across the county, and invested £1m of external funding into improving energy efficiency such as through LED street and other lighting.

“In January, we worked with a range of partners to publish the East Sussex Climate Emergency Road Map, setting out a number of no-regret actions that will be delivered over the next couple of years by partnerships in the public, private and community sectors, and we have received an indicative funding allocation of up to £41m to implement our Bus Service Improvement Plan.

“We know that there is a long way to go to reach our ultimate target, but the results so far show our commitment to getting there.

“We will continue to work with partners and MPs to identify projects and additional funding that will help us become a carbon neutral authority and enable residents to reduce their own carbon footprint.”

A spokesperson for the East Sussex Pension Fund said:

“The Fund has a legal responsibility to pay pensions which are affordable, and not to make investment decisions for any other purpose than to generate a return. Its sole beneficiaries are the 82,000 pension scheme members who are paying contributions to receive a future pension.

“The Fund has a policy of engagement first. As a unit holder in pooled investments rather than a direct investor, it does not select the underlying companies itself. The Pension Committee make strategic decisions about the types of investment the Fund can hold, under the advice and guidance of the Fund’s officers, external advisors and government departments. These governing bodies and advisers all favour engagement and active stewardship over divestment.

“The Fund’s exposure to the fossil fuel sector has reduced significantly in recent years. The Fund must legally invest in a wide range of assets and has invested around £1.5 billion in funds which have a bias to climate solutions, greener revenues, and resource efficiency, including fossil free equity investments.”