« Previous | Main | Next »

British Prime Minister in Sticky Situation

July 23, 2008 1:17 PM

By Stephen Webb, ABC News London

The right to peaceful protest is an important part democracy. Most protesters choose to stand around shouting and waving placards, but the British environmentalist group, Plane Stupid, is a little more imaginative.

Yesterday evening, Dan Glass, member of Plane Stupid, glued himself to the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, while visiting 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister’s residence, to receive an award for his campaign work.

Plane Stupid campaigns against the expansion of aviation because concerns about climate change. The group recently made a protest on the roof of the British Houses of Parliament, and has blocked airport runways in the past.

According to them, Dan Glass covered his hand with superglue that he had smuggled in, and then placed it onto the sleeve of the Prime Minister’s suite.  At the same time, he asked why the PM and his ministers had refused to meet London residents opposed to the construction of a third runway at London’s Heathrow Airport. 

The consultation for the expansion has been highly controversial, particularly after last year allegations arose that the British government had colluded with the airport operator, BAA, in the process. However, the government and BAA deny the allegations. This week, a BBC Panorama investigation reported that BAA argued that ‘green’ super planes would ensure pollution was kept within limits, despite the fact the planes do not exist and no manufacturer has any plans for any aircraft of this kind. The government responded that they were only an “illustrative example”, according to The Times Newspaper. John McDonnell, a member of the British parliament has called for a public inquiry.

ABC News asked London’s Metropolitan Police who are in charge of security at Number Ten, if they were worried about more dangerous substances being smuggled in this way. A spokesperson said that there had been “no security breach” since “he was an invited guest.”

Plane Stupid say that every step was taken to ensure the glue did not come into contact with the Prime Minister’s skin, in line with their commitment to peaceful protest.

July 23, 2008 in Stephen Webb | Permalink | User Comments (1)

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/433071/31546736

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference British Prime Minister in Sticky Situation:

User Comments

Posted by: Sean O'Brien | Jul 24, 2008 2:44:43 PM

Post a comment

Name:

Email Address:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Comments: