East Sussex campaigners ‘sound the death knell for fossil fuels’

The demonstration was part of a national day of action calling on councils to stop investing in oil and gas and comes as world leaders meet in Glasgow for COP26.

Divest East Sussex has been pressing East Sussex County Council to end East Sussex Pension Fund investments in fossil fuels.

The campaigners also delivered a giant handbell-shaped message for Keith Glazier, leader of the council, Gerard Fox, chair of the pension committee and Nick Bennett, lead member for resources and climate change, urging them to ensure East Sussex’s local government pension scheme follows the example of other organisations and fully divests from oil and gas companies.

A spokesperson for Divest East Sussex said: “By clinging on to its investments in fossil fuel companies, East Sussex County Council is effectively providing a fig-leaf for these companies’ ongoing attempts to block effective climate action and missing a huge opportunity to show real leadership on the climate crisis.

“A public commitment to ditch these investments (‘divestment’) would send a powerful signal to policymakers to get serious about tackling the climate emergency, which will require the rapid phasing out of fossil fuels. It’s time for the county council to sound its own death knell for fossil fuels by committing to fully divest local people’s pensions from fossil fuels.”