Transport for London has won a court order that will restrict the ability of Just Stop Oil protesters causing chaos on the capital’s main roads.
It came hours after activists blocked the A4 at Barons Court Tube station for two hours on Tuesday morning in their ongoing campaign demanding that the government halts all new oil and gas licences.
But the campaign group said it would not change its tactics, saying: “We will not be stopped by injunctions sought to silence non-violent people.”
Two Just Stop Oil supporters who scaled the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge at Dartford early on Monday morning agreed to come down late on Tuesday and were arrested.
The TfL injunction was approved by the High Court after the mayor was involved in a meeting with Home Secretary Suella Braverman, Cabinet Office minister Nadhim Zahawi and the Metropolitan police on Sunday to discuss the disruption being caused by the eco protesters.
Just Stop Oil has threatened protests every day in October. Police have already made more than 470 arrests.
A total of 26 people were arrested on suspicion of wilful obstruction of the highway and taken into custody following the protest on the A4 Talgarth Road.
The injunction will make it easier for police to take pre-emptive action against protesters and to secure jail sentences.
Mr Khan told the Evening Standard on Tuesday: “As far as Just Stop Oil and other protesters are concerned, I accept that there is a climate emergency and I accept we have got to take action, and I accept protest is a cornerstone of our democracy.
“But it’s got to be done in a peaceful, lawful and safe way. It’s not benefiting our wish to change public opinion if you are stopping buses or stopping public transport or causing criminal damage to pieces of art – or on a new Elizabeth line.
“We are trying to encourage people to walk, cycle or use public transport to join the cause tackling climate change. It’s made the cause much harder when stories emerge of ambulances being delayed, fire engines being delayed, people not being able to get to hospital appointments.
“It’s really important we try to educate people about the dangers of climate change and air pollution, change public opinion but also change the opinions of Government. My worry is the tactics of Just Stop Oil are achieving none of these things.”
The mayor added: “It is a very specific injunction. This is not stopping Just Stop Oil protests. What it is saying is: you have got to understand the parameters of protest, and that means it should be peaceful, lawful and safe.”
Protest action has also included throwing soup on to Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers painting at the National Gallery and spraying paint over the rotating New Scotland Yard sign.
A TfL spokesperson said: “We are doing all we can to ensure that London’s road network operates safely and efficiently and that vital emergency service vehicles - such as ambulances and fire engines - are able to move freely through the city.
“As part of that work, we have today obtained an injunction to stop protests by Just Stop Oil on key areas of the TfL road network in central London. We will continue working with our partners to tackle any ongoing disruption across the city.”
A Just Stop Oil spokeswoman said: “We will not be intimidated by changes to the law, we will not be stopped by injunctions sought to silence non-violent people. These are irrelevant when set against mass starvation, slaughter, the loss of our rights, freedoms and communities.
“The greatest threat to law and order is the climate crisis and the Government is seeking to extend UK fossil fuel extraction, planning to make the lives of ordinary people worse, planning the deaths of millions. This is a criminal act.
“The government is criminally failing in its fundamental duty to protect the people. The social contract is broken. As citizens, as parents and children we have every right under British Law to proect ourselves and those we love.
“We will continue to resist until the government makes a meaningful statement to end new oil and gas.”
