Jailed Insulate Britain eco-activist ENDS hunger strike after 26 days
Jailed Insulate Britain eco-activist ENDS hunger strike early after 26 days with nine more protestors facing jail when they appear in court tomorrow
- Emma Smart, 44, had been under medical supervision on the hospital wing
- Smart had refused to eat since November 26 at HMP Bronzefield in Surrey
- She has ended hunger strike after receiving letter from MP Sir Richard Drax
- Further nine Insulate Britain protesters will appear at High Court tomorrow
A jailed Insulate Britain protester has ended her 26-day prison hunger strike early after her MP wrote to her and requested a visit, the campaign group revealed today.
Emma Smart, 44, had been under medical supervision on the hospital wing at HMP Bronzefield in Ashford, Surrey, since November 26 after refusing to eat food.
She is now almost four weeks into a four-month prison sentence for contempt of court for breaching a National Highways injunction on protesting on the M25.
Smart originally vowed to go on hunger strike ‘until the government issues a meaningful statement to get on with the job of insulating Britain’s leaky homes’.
But the Extinction Rebellion offshoot said the protester from Weymouth, Dorset, ended this strike yesterday after receiving a letter from Sir Richard Drax.
Insulate Britain said the Conservative MP ‘wrote to express concern for Emma’s welfare and to request a visit, which is likely to happen within a couple of weeks’.
It comes as the group said a further nine Insulate Britain protesters will appear at the High Court in London tomorrow to face a charge of contempt of court.
Smart is pictured being taken to prison after being jailed at the High Court on November 17
Smart was imprisoned with eight other people from Insulate Britain. One of the group’s protests is pictured on October 13, which blocked the M26 at junction 31 in Thurrock, Essex
Smart said: ‘I have ended my hunger strike after 26 days, one day for every failed COP meeting since the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change was signed.
‘I remain proud of my actions with Insulate Britain and will continue to do all that I can to pressure our government to live up to its duty to protect the people from climate collapse.’
Nine Insulate Britain protesters will appear at the High Court in London tomorrow
A further nine Insulate Britain protesters will appear at the High Court in London tomorrow to face a charge of contempt of court.
Among them is Dr Ben Buse, 36, university researcher from Bristol, who who has already been jailed for four months along with eight other Insulate Britain protesters in the first High Court hearing on November 17.
Dr Buse is due to appear at the High Court again tomorrow along with eight new defendants on a further charge of contempt of court.
The other eight who will appear tomorrow are Steve Gower, 54, Ruth Jarman, 58, Biff Whipster, 54, Richard Ramsden, 75, Stephen Pritchard, 62, Dr Diana Warner, 62, Paul Sheeky 46, and Reverend Sue Parfitt, 79.
She continued: ‘I welcome the approach from my MP, Sir Richard Drax and look forward to meeting him to discuss Insulate Britain’s demands. I hope that he is prepared to listen and also to convey to the government the absolute gravity of our situation.
‘The next three to four years will determine the future of humanity, so this is no time for half-hearted measures. Boris needs to get on with the job.’
Smart was jailed for four months on November 17 for breaching an injunction and immediately vowed to stop eating until the Government moves to insulate homes.
Insulate Britain members including her husband Andy Smith then staged a 24-hour fast outside 10 Downing Street in solidarity with her.
Smart is one of nine members of the group jailed for breaching an injunction designed to prevent the road blockades which have sparked anger among motorists and others affected by the protests.
They appeared at the High Court on November 17 after they admitted breaching an injunction by taking part in a blockade at junction 25 of the M25 during the morning rush hour on October 8.
They received sentences of between three and six months and ordered to pay £5,000 in costs each.
Among the others in that group of nine was Dr Ben Buse, 36, a university researcher from Bristol, who also recently ended his hunger strike which began on November 25.
Dr Buse is due to appear at the High Court again tomorrow along with eight new defendants from Insulate Britain on a further charge of contempt of court.
Emma Smart, pictured with her husband Andy Smith. Smart was one of nine members of the group jailed for breaching an injunction designed to prevent chaotic road blockades
Smart is seen in a photo issued by Insulate Britain last month, the day before she was jailed
Supporters of the nine jailed activists protest on Lambeth Bridge in London on November 20
The other eight are Steve Gower, 54, Ruth Jarman, 58, Biff Whipster, 54, Richard Ramsden, 75, Stephen Pritchard, 62, Dr Diana Warner, 62, Paul Sheeky 46, and Reverend Sue Parfitt, 79.
Insulate Britain began a wave of protests in September and supporters have blocked the M25, roads in London including around Parliament, roads in Birmingham and Manchester and around the Port of Dover in Kent.
Videos showing furious motorists dragging the climate activists away from the blockades have gone viral on a number of occasions.
The group is demanding that the Government insulate Britain’s ‘leaky homes’ and end deaths it says are caused by winter fuel shortages.
Insulate Britain want the Government to reduce carbon emissions by up to 20 per cent by insulating the UK’s housing stock, starting with social housing by 2025.
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