Anti-Fracking Protesters Cleared By Police

Police are forcibly clearing protesters from a road outside a potential site for fracking in Balcombe, West Sussex.

Activists are currently taking part in a six-day Reclaim The Power action camp after Cuadrilla began carrying out exploratory drilling at the site.

Hundreds of campaigners staged noisy protests in the face of a heavy police presence.

Sussex Police have served a notice under section 14 of the Public Order Act because they believe the crowd of people might cause public disorder, serious damage to property or serious disruption to the life of the community.

Shouts of "shame on you" and "no violence" erupted from the crowd as police tried to move the protesters back to the main gate of the site.

Demonstrators chanted: "We are peaceful, what are you?"

A protester is removed from the Cuadrilla HQ in Lichfield

Vanessa Vine, founder of Frack Free Sussex and Britain and Ireland Frack Free, said the police presence was disproportionately heavy and added that Reclaim The Power were "not nasty, violent people" but "altruistic people who are challenging what the Government is doing".

Earlier, Sussex Police said on Twitter: "We would like to reiterate that protesters aren't being kettled and are free to leave the site as they wish."

Cuadrilla has condemned the "illegal direct actions" against its staff and operations.

Campaigners opposing the controversial process of extracting shale gas blockaded the firm's headquarters while others superglued themselves to a PR form used by the energy company.

The action at Cuadrilla in Lichfield, Staffordshire, and at PR firm Bell Pottinger in central London comes on the first of two days of "mass civil disobedience" which campaigners have pledged to carry out.

In a statement, Cuadrilla said: "Protesters broke into our Lichfield office, harassed our staff and chained themselves to filing cabinets.

Protesters' tents outside the office in Lichfield

"The police are on site dealing with this. We condemn all illegal direct actions against our people and operations."

The firm insisted that the morale of its staff at various sites is "fine", and they and the teams supporting the company are "doing a magnificent job".

"They know that what we are doing is legal, approved and safe, and that shale gas is essential to improve our energy security, heat our homes, and create jobs and growth.

"Cuadrilla is rightly held accountable for complying with multiple planning and environmental permits and conditions, which we have met and will continue to meet.

"Clearly we are held to one set of legally enforceable standards while some protesters believe that they can set out and follow their own."

Campaign group No Dash For Gas said six protesters superglued themselves to the glass door of Bell Pottinger at 8am and deployed reinforced arm tubes to stop anyone else getting inside.

Meanwhile, it said 20 protesters shut down the Cuadrilla site in Lichfield by blockading it with their bodies. It said two people inside the building had also hung banners from it saying: "Reclaim the power" and "Power to the people".

A group of around 20 protesters also demonstrated outside the constituency office of Balcombe MP and Cabinet Office minister Francis.

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