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‘A WAR against our freedoms,’ is how the home secretary Priti Patel has characterised environmental protests that led to disruption of groceries and newspapers – including The News - this week, as the government calls for stronger police reaction to protests.

The group Just Stop Oil targeted a fuel depot in Thurrock, Essex, with activists tunneling under surrounding roads.

The risk to vehicles meant that police closed some roads, including those to grocery distribution centres and a printworks used by The News.

Roads were reopened in the early hours but only to ‘priority’ traffic – but newspaper deliveries were not included, reportedly based on government advice.

Home secretary Priti Patel blasted environmental activists over their disruption of an oil depot and a printworks in Essex.

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Newspaper delivery vans were eventually added to the priority list yesterday afternoon, meaning further disruption was not expected.

Now the home secretary Priti Patel labelled the activists as ‘thugs’ and called on the police to use ‘the full force of the law’ to tackle future disruption.

Miss Patel said: ‘These thugs and so-called eco-warriors are waging a war against the British people by going out of their way with planned disruptions affecting our daily way of life – our freedoms, our free Press. They are in the wrong.

‘They should all be stopped, in my view. This is a symptomatic illustration of lawlessness in our country where it’s seen as OK for these people to behave in this way. It is not OK.

‘The police must impose the full force of the law and not allow these protesters to get on site. There are laws in place which should be used. Laws including arrest for aggravated trespass exist and my Public Order Bill will bring in new criminal offences for these tactics and protests.’

Speaking to the Daily Mail, a spokesman from Just Stop Oil said wider disruption to other businesses, including the print centre, was unintentional.

The group said their aim was to ‘continue demanding that the UK government ends licensing and consents for new fossil fuel projects’.

Essex Police have been eight arrests over the protest.

Just Stop Oil was formed at the end of 2021, with veteran environmental activist Roger Hallam, co-founder of Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain, among its leaders.

Home secretary Priti Patel labels environmental activists 'thugs' after protest disrupts printworks and other services in Essex