PHOTOS: Giant pink feet taken to County Hall in ‘foot-dragging’ protest over climate vote

[Update on 23 February: It’s now been confirmed that the votes on the three fossil fuel divestment proposals will now not take place until the 19 June 2024 Pension Committee meeting *at the earliest* – fully nine months after the proposals were originally made – and possibly not until even later. This is plainly outrageous, and further proof that the Fund’s own whitewash report on ‘Divestment v engagement’ – which the Fund wasted as much as £50k of public money on – was never intended to be anything other than a cover for continuing business as usual.]

Press release
Divest East Sussex [1]
Thursday 22 February 2024

More info: 07596 483 272

PHOTO: http://tinyurl.com/giantfeet [The giant ‘Divest Now’ feet (and sign) outside County Hall, 22 February 2024. Photo: Divest East Sussex]; http://tinyurl.com/divestfoot [The giant pink ‘DIVEST’ foot outside County Hall, 22 February 2024. Photo: Divest East Sussex]; http://tinyurl.com/divestcake [Pension Fund member Sarah Hazlehurst with cake and divestment birthday message, outside County Hall, 22 February 2024. Photo: Divest East Sussex]

GIANT PINK FEET TAKEN TO COUNTY HALL IN ‘FOOT-DRAGGING’ PROTEST OVER CLIMATE VOTE
Anger over further delay to votes on fossil fuel divestment

Thursday 22 February County Hall, Lewes: Climate campaigners staged a protest with a pair of giant pink feet, labelled ‘DIVEST’ and ‘NOW’, outside County Hall in Lewes this morning, calling on East Sussex County Council (ESCC) and the East Sussex Pension Fund to ‘stop dragging their feet on climate’. The protest – which was timed to coincide with a meeting of the East Sussex Pension Committee, the Fund’s decision-making body – took place after voting on three fossil fuel motions, originally proposed last September, was postponed for a second time.

Press release: Anger over further delay to votes on fossil fuel divestment

Press release
Divest East Sussex [1]
Tuesday 20 February 2024

More info: 07596 483 272

PHOTO: http://tinyurl.com/giantmessage2 [CAPTION: ‘Time to Divest’ protest outside County Hall on 6 February 2024. Photo credit: Steve Lewis]

ANGER OVER DELAY TO VOTING ON FOSSIL FUEL DIVESTMENT
Climate campaigners to hold ‘stop dragging your feet on climate’ protest at County Hall with giant pink feet

Thursday 22 February County Hall, Lewes, 9.30am: Climate campaigners from across East Sussex and Brighton & Hove have expressed anger over the further postponement of three votes on whether the East Sussex Pension Fund should divest from fossil fuels (oil, coal & gas). A protest featuring a giant pair of pink feet will take place outside County Hall this Thursday (22 Feb), calling on East Sussex County Council (ESCC) to ‘stop dragging its feet on climate’.

The votes were originally supposed to be taking place at this Thursday’s (22 February) meeting of the East Sussex Pension Committee, the five-person decision-making body for the Fund. Currently, the next opportunity for a vote to take place will be the 19 June Pension Committee meeting – fully *nine* months after the proposals were originally made.

Protest the delay to the votes on fossil fuel divestment! 22 February @ County Hall

We’ve just learned that the votes on fossil fuel divestment that were supposed to be taking place at the 22 February Pension Committee meeting have been postponed yet again.

This time the official story is that the special ‘analysis’ that was requested at the September 2023 Pension Committee still isn’t ready *five months* later.

In reality, this is all part of a pattern of delay, obfuscation and refusal that has dogged this issue at County Hall for the last ten years.

Join us at 9.30am outside County Hall on Thursday 22 February to tell East Sussex County Council: stop delaying climate action, it’s time to divest from fossil fuels!

Please email the decision makers before the votes on fossil fuel divestment on 22 February!

[Note added 17 February: we’ve now learned that the votes have been postponed *yet* again. See here for details.]

On 22 February the five-person East Sussex Pension Committee will meet to vote on three fossil fuel divestment proposals (see below for details).

Please send a polite email to the three Conservative Councillors before then (suggested text below), urging them to do the right thing and vote for divestment on 22 February. The remaining two Councillors support the proposals, which they made at the 19 Sept ’23 Pension Committee meeting.

Press release: Climate campaigners to take ‘giant letters’ message to County Hall

Press release
Divest East Sussex [1]
Tuesday 6 February 2024

More info: 07596 483 272

PHOTO: http://tinyurl.com/giantmessageescc [CAPTION: The giant message, with giant, outside County Hall, 6 February 2024. Photo credit: Steve Lewis]; http://tinyurl.com/giantmessage2 [CAPTION:
A message to East Sussex County Council and the East Sussex Pension Fund, 6 February 2024. Photo credit: Steve Lewis]; http://tinyurl.com/foxandfriend [CAPTION: ‘Cllr Fox’ with oily friend outside County Hall, 6 February 2024. Photo credit: Steve Lewis]; http://tinyurl.com/lettersenroute [CAPTION:
The giant letters are processed through the centre of Lewes on the way to County Hall, 6 February 2024. Photo credit: Steve Lewis]

CLIMATE CAMPAIGNERS TAKE ‘GIANT LETTERS’ MESSAGE TO COUNTY HALL
‘Time to Divest’ protest at last County Council meeting before votes on fossil fuel divestment

Tuesday 6 February, Lewes: Climate campaigners processed through the streets of Lewes to County Hall this morning (Tuesday 6 Feb) with giant letters spelling out the words ‘TIME TO DIVEST’. The protest was demanding that the East Sussex Pension Fund stops investing in the giant fossil fuel (oil, coal & gas) companies that are driving the climate crisis. It was timed to coincide with East Sussex County Council (ESCC)’s last full council meeting before three votes on fossil fuel divestment on 22 February.

Participants assembled outside Lewes train station before processing to County Hall for a photocall with the letters at 9am, followed by a special performance by acting troupe The Crude Oil Mechanicals. The latter included the Ghost of Climate Future and a special foxy guest ‘Cllr Fox’, whose namesake Gerard Fox is chair of the East Sussex Pension Committee, the decision-making body for the East Sussex Pension Fund.