Elves On The Health: Giant Divest Cracker To Descend On Lewes County Hall

Monday, 2 December 2024 15:44

By Dominic Kureen @WriteOnDom

A group of carol-singing elves and santas bearing a six-foot 'DIVEST' cracker will be staging a special carol-singing protest outside County Hall in Lewes tomorrow (3 December).

The purpose of the protest is to demand the East Sussex Pension Fund stop investing in the giant fossil fuel companies, like Shell and BP, that are driving the climate crisis.

The event, which will run from 8.45 – 9.45am, will feature a range of carols with lyrics changed to highlight the role of Councillors Gerard Fox (Cons, Hailsham New Town), Ian Hollidge (Cons, Bexhill South) and Paul Redstone (Cons, Northern Rother) in blocking fossil fuel divestment on the East Sussex Pension Committee, the Fund's ultimate decision-making body.

The East Sussex Pension Fund, which covers Brighton & Hove as well as East Sussex but is administered by East Sussex County Council (ESCC), has consistently refused to stop investing in fossil fuels (oil, coal and gas).

It currently has millions of pounds of local people’s pension monies invested in oil and gas companies like Shell and BP.

A long list of local organisations and individuals have called on the East Sussex Pension Fund to make a public commitment to fully divest from fossil fuels.

These include: Bexhill Town Council, Brighton & Hove City Council, Hastings Borough Council, Lewes District and Town Councils, Peacehaven Town Council, Rother District Council, Saleshurst & Robertsbridge Parish Council, and UNISON.

Global carbon emissions from the burning of fossil fuels – the main driver of global climate change - reached a record high in 2024, according to research by the Global Carbon Project published last month.

Based on past experience, a heavy security presence is anticipated to 'protect' the Hall from the elves. According to figures obtained using the Freedom of Information Act, between Oct '22 and Feb '24 East Sussex County Council spent £54.8k ‘protecting’ the Hall from the likes of petition hand-ins, giant newspaper headlines and a pair of giant cardboard feet.

Pension Fund member Sarah Hazlehurst said:

"By clinging on to its remaining investments in fossil fuel companies the East Sussex Pension Fund and East Sussex County Council are effectively providing a fig-leaf for these companies’ ongoing attempts to block effective climate action and missing a huge opportunity to show real leadership on the climate crisis.

"Moreover, divestment campaigns have a proven track record of bringing about real-world change.

"Indeed, a 2013 study by academics at the University of Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment concluded that in almost every previous example, from tobacco to South Africa, divestment campaigns were successful in bringing about restrictive legislation affecting targeted companies."

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