Two women have been charged with criminal damage after spraying what is believed to be powdered paint inside of Westminster Abbey. The damage was inflicted on Charles Darwin’s grave as part of a Just Stop Oil protest.
The two women alleged to have been involved have now been named by the Metropolitan Police as 66-year-old Alyson Lee, of Park Grove, Derby, and 77-year-old Diane Bligh, of Langham Place, Frome.
The pair have been charged with criminal damage. They have ben bailed to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court; Lee will appear on February 11 and Bligh will appear on February 12.
A spokesperson for the church said they do not anticipate there will be any permanent damage and its doors remain open for worshippers and visitors. The EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) confirmed on Friday that last year was the warmest on record globally and the first calendar year that the average temperature exceeded 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.
Pursuing efforts to prevent the world warming more than 1.5C above pre-industrial temperatures is one of the key commitments of the global Paris Treaty which countries agreed to in 2015, in a bid to avert the most dangerous impacts of climate change.
The scientists said human-caused climate change was the primary driver for record temperatures, while other factors such as the Pacific Ocean’s “El Nino” weather phenomenon, which raises global temperatures, also had an effect.
Analysis from the Met Office, University of East Anglia and the National Centre for Atmospheric Science also found 2024 was the hottest on record, and “likely” the first year exceeding 1.5C. In a statement, a Just Stop Oil spokesperson said: “Today’s action comes as the death toll rises to 24 in California, as fires continue to rip across the state.
“The fires have been driven by climate breakdown after decades of drought, followed by rapid swings between extreme wet and dry conditions in the past two years. This has created large areas of ‘tinder dry’ vegetation, creating the perfect conditions for uncontrollable wildfires.”
The Westminster Abbey spokesperson said: “Westminster Abbey can confirm that orange chalk was sprayed by climate activists on Charles Darwin’s gravestone today. The Abbey’s conservators are taking immediate action to clean the memorial and do not anticipate that there will be any permanent damage.
“The police were called to the scene and dealt with the incident. The Abbey remains open for visiting and worshipping.”
A full statement from the Metropolitan Police reads: “Two women will appear in court charged with criminal damage following an incident in Westminster Abbey on Monday, 13 January.
“Alyson Lee – 66 (20.06.58) of Park Grove, Derby and Diane Bligh – 77 (04.02.47) of Langham Place, Frome and have been bailed to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court charged with criminal damage. Lee will appear on 11 February and Bligh on 12 February.
“The women were arrested after a substance, believed to be a powdered paint, was sprayed on an area inside Westminster Abbey.”
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