Banbury grandmother who climbed M25 gantries as part of Just Stop Oil protest has been found not guilty of causing public nuisance

Rachel Payne, 74, of Bodicote, was at Guildford Crown Court with two other Just Stop Oil protesters, Sam Holland and Isabel Rock, who took action on the M25 on November 9, 2022.

They were among scores of Just Stop Oil supporters, who climbed on gantries that week to protest against the government’s plan to licence over 100 new oil and gas projects.

After a five-day trial, the three were found not guilty of intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance by a unanimous verdict.

During the trial the prosecution emphasised that this was a planned and coordinated action that resulted in significant delays to the travelling public, that all three defendants were trespassing in a place that was forbidden to the public and that they had taken considerable risks with public safety.

Giving evidence, National Highways Ltd claimed that traffic was delayed by between four and five hours and that between 9,000 and 30,000 vehicles were impacted. None of the defendants denied the indictment, but they argued that they had a reasonable excuse for their actions.

Rachel Payne said that she took action because she was "fearful for her children and grandchildren about government inaction on the climate crisis".

Following the verdict, Rachel Payne said: “I thank the members of the jury deeply for their ‘common sense’ verdict. They were actually permitted to hear agreed facts, which were read out to them, about the severe threats the present climate emergency poses to our world and they listened.

"I have attended earlier trials of Just Stop Oil supporters where they were not allowed to mention the climate crisis. As a result, in these trials, the jury could not hear the whole truth about why the supporters took action.

"In my statement to the police, I expressed my fears for my family and world and my hopes for an ‘eco-U- turn’. The tide may well be turning if the agreed facts on the climate crisis can become widely known and acted upon internationally.”