EXTINCTION Rebellion activists staged a symbolic funeral procession through Launceston on Friday morning, September 3.

In a dramatic turn two activists climbed ladders strategically placed at either side of the entrance to Barclays bank, hanging a banner which read ‘Stop funding fossil fuels now’.

The group says that the theatrical and dramatic protest was designed to raise awareness of the role that Barclays plays in financing the climate crisis through its support for the fossil fuel industry and was part of a nationwide campaign to demand that Barclays stops all new fossil fuel investment immediately.

Shoppers were witness to a range of dramatic scenes as the funeral ceremony unfolded. Activists read out a list of environmental protectors who have lost their lives in attempts to prevent the destruction of the natural world, while ‘dirty bankers’ held open briefcases full of dirty money whilst evidence of increasing fossil fuel funding by Barclays bank was read aloud, and others held a symbolic ‘die-in’ after being doused in fake oil.

Tim Snell from Extinction Rebellion said: “This part of the action was performed by Barclays ‘dirty bankers’ who after being read a charge sheet highlighting Barclays climate crimes through funding fossil fuel projects poured fake non toxic oil over two protesters who symbolically died after the oil pouring. This was done with great care so that no trace of this was left in the town square.

“Despite the escalating climate crisis, Barclays bank has actually increased its financing for fossil fuel companies in the last five years. We are here today to tell the truth about Europe’s dirtiest bank which, despite empty promises, continues to fund the most environmentally damaging projects in the world.”

Extinction Rebellion activist Helen Wood added: “Many people are shocked when they realise that their high street bank is still lending to the fossil fuel industry. None of us want our savings to undermine our children’s future. We’ve been advising people to switch to banks that make a point of lending to socially responsible companies and green projects and which do not fund oil, gas or coal projects.”

The Post contacted Barclays UK for comment. In response a Barclays spokesperson said: “We are aligning our entire financing portfolio to support the goals of the Paris Agreement —significantly scaling up green financing, directly investing in new green technologies and helping clients in key sectors change their business models to reduce their climate change impact.

“By 2025, we will reduce the emissions intensity of our power portfolio by 30%, and reduce absolute emissions of our energy portfolio by 15%. Increasing at pace, our capital markets business has already facilitated £46-billion of green finance. We are one of the only banks globally investing our own capital — £175-million — into innovative, green start-ups. By deploying finance in this way, we are accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy and will become a net zero bank by 2050.”