Activists scale Defra building in call for meat and dairy farm subsidies to end

They scaled the building at around 6am on Tuesday

Environmental campaigners who have scaled a Government building in Westminster say they plan to stay there “indefinitely”.

Four activists from Animal Rebellion, an offshoot of Extinction Rebellion, used ladders, ropes and harnesses to climb the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) office as high as “20 metres” at around 6am on Tuesday.

The group, which also let off flares, says it is demanding an end to subsidies for meat and dairy farming in a protest against climate change.

They plans to stay in place until Boris Johnson pledges to urge all world leaders to also end such subsidies when they attend the Cop26 summit next week.

Police are at the scene with the fire service and are liaising with the protesters, although no arrests have been made.

Animal Rebellion spokesman Nathan McGovern says: “Our protesters climbed the building in the early hours of this morning to send a clear message that we want an end to support for animal agriculture which is killing our planet.

“The four, who are around 10 to 20 metres high, have unveiled a banner saying ‘Cop26: Invest in a plant-based future’.

Published: 26/10/2021 by Radio NewsHub