Activists Face Criminal Damage Charge After Protest at Rishi Sunak’s Home

Greenpeace activists on the roof of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's house in Richmond, North Yorkshire, on Aug. 3, 2023. PA Media

Three Greenpeace activists who protested on the roof of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Yorkshire home last year will face criminal damage charges.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has authorised criminal charges against one man and two women following a review of the evidence provided by North Yorkshire Police.

Head of the CPS Special Crime Division, Rosemary Ainslie, said in a statement that three suspects will appear at York Magistrates’ Court on March 21.

“Mathieu Soete, 38, Amy Rugg-Easey, 33, and Alexandra Wilson, 32, will each be charged with a single count of criminal damage,” Ms. Ainslie confirmed.

The three suspects were among five people—three men and two women—who were arrested on Aug. 3 last year, after scaling the grade II listed manor house in Kirby Sigston, near Northallerton.

Ms. Sunak and his family were on holiday in California at the time of the incident.

The climate campaigning group draped the country house in oil-black fabric to “drive home the dangerous consequences” of the prime minister’s announcement of new drilling licences for the North Sea.

The black draping banner had a “no new oil” sign on it. One of the protesters, Ms. Wilson, of Shiremoor in North Tyneside, released a video message from on the roof of Mr. Sunak’s house.

“We’re all here because Rishi Sunak has opened the door to a new drilling frenzy in the North Sea while large parts of our world are literally on fire. This will be a disaster for the climate,” she said.

After the group returned to the ground, they were spoken to by officers before being loaded into the back of police vans.

The North Yorkshire Police confirmed that two men and two women had been arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage and public nuisance.

Ms. Rugg-Easey is also originally from Shiremoor, while Mr. Soete comes from Hackney in London. The CPS confirmed that the fourth suspect will answer bail at a later date.

“The Crown Prosecution Service reminds all concerned that criminal proceedings against the three defendants are active and that they have the right to a fair trial,” said Ms. Ainslie.

The head of the CPS Special Crime Division also added that it was “extremely important there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”

Commenting on the incident, Greenpeace UK climate campaigner Philip Evans defended the the group’s actions.

“This is a peaceful protest,” Mr. Evans said. He said that the activists knocked on the door when they arrived at Mr. Sunak’s home but there was no answer.

Asked whether it was intrusive to target someone’s home, Mr. Evans said: “This is the prime minister. He is the one that was standing in Scotland going to drill for every last drop of oil while the world is burning.

Mr. Evans said that Mr. Sunak is “personally responsible for that decision and we’re all going to be paying a high price if he goes through with it. It is personal.”

On Jul. 31 last year, Mr. Sunak announced the decision to grant hundreds of new oil and gas licences in the UK. It was part of the government’s “drive to make Britain more energy independent.”

“We’re choosing to power up Britain from Britain and invest in crucial industries such as carbon capture and storage, rather than depend on more carbon-intensive gas imports from overseas—which will support thousands of skilled jobs, unlock further opportunities for green technologies and grow the economy,” Mr. Sunak said in a statement.

Commenting on the government’s oil and gas announcement, Mr. Evans has called it a “cynical political ploy to sow division.”

The activist suggested that oil and gas from the North Sea will benefit oil companies, unlike UK households burdened by “sky-high bills.”

Patricia Devlin contributed to this report.