Environment – Mohammed Shaakir

Thousands of school and university students took part in the global climate strike in London today.

Students took part in the Fridays for Future movement initiated by teen climate activist Greta Thunberg to call for urgent action in tackling climate change.

The event was organised by the UK Schools Climate Network (UKSCN) and started at 11 pm.

Many of the students said they were fed up of the Tories and wanted reform.

Anna, 19, said, “I want the government to wake up and to give a f***. This election should be a climate election.”

A similar mood was present amongst strikers as chants of “Where the f*** is the government?” swept through the crowd, alongside, “Revolution”, “F*** Boris” and “Tory scum.”

Stephanie, 17, travelled from Surrey with a homemade placard. She said, “We don’t empty promises from the government. We demand serious action.”

The protest in the capital was one of over a hundred in the UK according to UKSCN.

The students later joined up with UCU strikers in solidarity.

Extinction Rebellion (XR) protesters caused dramatic scenes at several of London’s public transport stations last week.

The protestors caused severe delays and obstruction to the tubes and trains across London during the morning commute in the wake of a ban on all XR protests in the capital.

As of Thursday, more than 1,400 people have been arrested during eleven days of XR action, with the threat that anyone defying police orders would be detained.

Adam Smith, an XR protester in Central London claimed, “Chaos and disruption need to occur for the government to wake up and meet our demands.” However, he added, members putting themselves in severe danger, “is not a price worth paying.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, stressed that the actions were “extremely dangerous and disruptive.”

The Met Chief, Cressida Dick, said in a statement, “This is placing horrendous strain on London and the Met.”