We turned up at the meeting point – a train station in the tiny Suffolk village of Saxmundham – to be greeted by 15 police officers including some FIT from London. As we set out on a lovely sunny ride through the countryside, the extent of the over-the-top police operation became clear as we passed several unmarked cars full of FIT photographers, the entrance to Sizewell guarded by another twenty cops, and a further ten congregated at our end-point on Sizewell beach. All told we reckon there were fifty cops on hand to police our fun family day out to Sizewell. It was a great critical mass, a good time was had by all, and the local press seemed as bemused as we were by the ridiculousness of the police operation. Wonder if there are any red faces in police intelligence this weekend?
Why Sizewell on Mayday weekend?
This demo was part of a national weekend of action against false solutions to climate change. As climate change rises up the political agenda, a huge number of techno-fixes are forming a new economic sector: from biofuels to nuclear power, carbon-trading to hydrogen fuel cells, dumping urine in the ocean to carbon capture and storage. Everywhere corporations are seeking the elusive elixir which allows us to continue business as usual. All of these technologies are a distraction from the real solutions: a massive reduction in our consumption and the end to economic growth.
Let's challenge these false solutions to climate chaos and show the real solution: far-reaching social change.