A number of organisations, including Just Stop Oil and Palestine Action, could be banned in the UK as “extremist protest groups” under new proposals put forward by a senior government adviser.
The approach currently applied to terrorist organizations should be used as a model, according to political violence adviser John Woodcock, also known as Lord Walney, the BBC reported on Sunday, citing extracts from the report.
In the recommendations that will now be presented to the Council of Ministers, Woodcock supports the prohibition of groups that “routinely use criminal tactics to try to achieve their objectives”.
“Militant groups like Palestine Action and Just Stop Oil are using criminal tactics to create chaos and hold the public and workers to ransom without fear of consequences,” he said.
“The banning of terrorist groups has made it more difficult for their activists to plan crimes – this approach should also be extended to extremist protest groups.”
If adopted, the measures could restrict a group’s ability to raise funds and its right to assemble on British soil.
Climate activists from Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion have repeatedly paralyzed public life with large protests in which people have glued or chained themselves together.
Just Stop Oil rejected the proposed sanctions, arguing instead that the government was “dangerous radicals who are endangering us all” through their climate policies.
According to the BBC, the government is considering the report’s recommendations.
A small number of protesters have displayed “violent and hateful behavior” in recent months, the Interior Ministry told the broadcaster.
“Extremism of any kind has no place in our society and we will not tolerate tactics that aim to intimidate, threaten or disrupt the law-abiding majority.”
