A person has been arrested for causing a public nuisance after a lorry crashed on the M25 while Just Stop Oil protests were taking place.
The Metropolitan Police say officers from the Surrey and Essex force are at the scene dealing with protesters who have climbed on gantries at several points along the motorway.
Essex Police said the incident, which happened on Wednesday morning, has led to road closures between J26 and J27 clockwise.
The force has not confirmed whether it was the result of activists who have been demonstrating in the area, and the cause of the accident is unclear.
Surrey Police has confirmed that one activist has been arrested between J8 and J9.
Essex Police has urged commuters to find alternative routes to travel as it deals with protesters climbing gantries along the motorway.
A spokesperson said: “Traffic is still moving through this junction at the moment, but very slowly. There will be delays to journeys. We are working to resolve this as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience.”
According to reports, the motorway is blocked at several parts including junction 4 clockwise, junction 7-8 clockwise, junction 25-27 clockwise and junction 30 clockwise.
It comes after the Metropolitan Police announced that eight people were charged yesterday with conspiracy to cause a public nuisance following attempts to cause disruption on the M25.
The proactive crackdown, in partnership with Surrey, Essex and Hertfordshire Police force also saw a further 14 people charged with causing a public nuisance following protests on the M25.
Activists shut down sections of the same motorway by climbing onto gantries during rush hour on Monday and Tuesday.
On Sunday, the Met said it had carried out an investigation that gave it “strong reason” to suspect Just Stop Oil was planning to “disrupt major motorway road networks”.
Business secretary Grant Shapps condemned the protests by Just Stop Oil saying: “It’s completely wrong to disrupt people’s lives this way,” adding “I hope justice is served up to these people.”
Just Stop Oil staged 32 days of disruption from the end of September and throughout October, which the Met said resulted in 677 arrests with 111 people charged, and officers working a total of 9,438 additional shifts.
According to Just Stop Oil, its supporters have been arrested nearly 2,000 times since its campaign began on April 1, and five are currently in prison.
