Just Stop Oil activists jailed for plotting to disrupt airport

Four Just Stop Oil activists have been jailed for plotting to disrupt Manchester Airport.

Indigo Rumbelow, 31, Daniel Knorr, 23, Leanorah Ward, 22, and Margaret Reid, 54, were convicted of conspiracy to intentionally cause a public nuisance. Manchester Minshull Crown Court heard the protesters were arrested in August last year near the airport.

They were equipped with bolt cutters, angle grinders, glue, sand, Just Stop Oil high-visibility vests and a leaflet containing instructions to follow when interacting with police. Ward was additionally found in possession of a handwritten note which outlined the motive of the group to enter the airfield and to then contact police to alert them of their activity.

The court heard they planned to stick themselves to the taxiway using the glue and sand. The four defendants were found guilty in February following a trial.

A fifth accused was acquitted. Rumbelow, from London, was jailed for 30 months; Knorr, from Birmingham, was jailed for two years; Ward, also from Birmingham, was sentenced to 18 months; and Reid, from Kendal in Cumbria, was locked up for 18 months.

Each was ordered to pay £2,000 in costs. Detective Chief Inspector Tony Platten said: "We know this disruption was deliberately planned to coincide with the height of the summer holidays, targeting the public and their families.

"It was vital that we prevented this from happening. People work hard for their time off, and we have a duty to ensure they can enjoy it without fear or disruption.

"The group's actions demonstrated a complete disregard for the impact on the lives of those travelling via Greater Manchester, and I welcome the sentences handed down today." Read more from Sky News:Scientists embark on study to save Britain's beesWarning of heat impact on pregnant women and newborns Rad Taylor, director of aerodrome operations at Manchester Airport, said the group's plans would have caused "significant disruption for tens of thousands of passengers" as well as a "significant safety risk". He added: "The potential consequences of that do not bear thinking about." In statements released by Just Stop Oil, the defendants said the action was part of a campaign for a treaty to end the extraction and burning of oil, gas and coal by 2030..