Climate Camp reveals London targets

Environmental activists are planning to target more than 20 major institutions including the Bank of England as part of a week-long protest against climate change.

By Louise Gray, Environment CorrespondentPublished: 6:03PM BST 24 Aug 2009

The Climate Camp is a loose affiliation of thousands of environmental activists that come together every year to protest against the industries and institutions they believe are causing global warming. In previous years there have been high profile “Climate Camps” at Heathrow Airport and Kingsnorth Power Station.
This year the week-long camp is in London to demonstrate against the banking system, oil companies and the Government.

On Wednesday at least one thousand people will gather at a number of muster points around the capital before “swooping” on an undisclosed site to set up camp for a week. The meeting points include the mining company Rio Tinto and the site of the 2012 Olympics.
The location of the camp remains a closely guarded secret although it is expected to be an open green space like Hyde Park. The camp itself will require a massive infrastructure including huge marquees, compost toilets, kitchen facilities and hundreds of tents in the heart of the Capital.
The campsite will then facilitate a number of “direct actions” aimed at 22 institutions around the capital including the Royal Bank of Scotland, the headquarters of multinational companies like Shell and Government departments.
Actions could include “flash mobs” that invade offices, scaling rooftops to erect banners and impromptu “protest picnics” inside company head quarters.
A spokesman for the movement insisted the protests will be peaceful.
The Metropolitan Police has vowed to take a “softly, softly” approach to the protests following criticism of their tactics during the G20 protests.
However up to 500 officers will be deployed to police the camp everyday and the Met have said they are ready to tackle actions around the Capital.