Extinction Rebellion protest in Leeds continues into second day

They've been blocking Victoria Bridge since yesterday morning

Author: Ben BasonPublished 16th Jul 2019
Last updated 16th Jul 2019

Leeds is getting ready for a second day of disruption as Extinction Rebellion continue a week of action in the city centre.

Protesters have camped out on Victoria Bridge overnight - where a huge boat is the centre of a demonstration over climate change.

It caused traffic problems at rush hour yesterday with big tailbacks across the city.

It's comes as the leader of Leeds City Council Judith Blake's told us it's important they keep the public on side:

"We were well aware that they were coming to Leeds. We very much have the belief that people have the right to peaceful protest and as far as I'm aware that's the case thus far.

"The protesters want to have an impact so they will do so in a way that will cause disruption. I would just urge that we in Leeds have made a very strong statement that we believe there is a climate emergency - we've declared that.

"We're working with all our partners in Leeds to make sure that we get the action plan in place to actually come together to make the difference we need to make.

"What we mustn't do is alienate the public from what is going to be quite a challenging period because people are going to have to change the way they live so it's really important we work together to keep the public on side."

Police say they're trying to balance people's right to protest with the wider public's right go about their daily business.