EXTINCTION REBELLION activists scaled the offices of East Sussex County Council in Lewes today to demand that it stop investing pensions in fossil fuels. 

The protesters unfurled a banner from the county hall reading “ESCC: Which side are you on? Fossil fuels or climate action?” 

Activists from Divest East Sussex, who have spent a decade campaigning on the issue, participated in the protest wielding a large pair of cardboard scissors, urging the council to sever ties.

Campaigners handed over a letter addressed to Keith Glazier, leader of ESCC, urging the council to take action.

XR South East campaigner Mark Engineer warned: “This is just the start. There’s more to come if we don’t see meaningful action. 

“We’ll continue to take non-violent direct action against ESCC until they do the right thing and divest.”

The East Sussex Pension Fund, which also covers Brighton and Hove, currently holds around £28.2 million in fossil fuel investments in firms such as Shell and BP, campaigners say.

In June, it was announced that a long-delayed vote on divestment would be postponed yet again despite a report commissioned by the council appearing to support the case for divestment. 

Gabriel Carlyle from DES said: “Last year the Fund spent £55,000 of public money on a report which appeared to show that divestment would have no negative repercussions for the Fund and be straightforward to implement.

“Yet a vote on divestment was delayed, citing the need for further analysis.”

He added: “It’s time for the Fund to start taking the climate crisis seriously, stop its endless foot-dragging, and vote now to stop investing in fossil fuels.”