JUST Stop Oil leaders are holding secret training sessions as they plan to bring London to a standstill in a single day of mass action.
In one video, an activist evokes the suffragettes using an incendiary fire in a rousing speech with the intention of recruiting more environmentalists to her campaign of mayhem.
Recruits then receive four hours of training at a north London office linked to other hardline groups called the Activism Centre.
The building, where The Sun on Sunday snuck into one of the training sessions, is not only where members of Just Stop Oil meet, but is also linked to activists from Extinction Rebellion, Insulate Britain and Animal Rising.
Our research reveals:
1. ONE Just Stop Oil leader Lance bragged about trying to recruit enough protesters to shut down London this summer;
2. TRAINING leader Judy Bruce, 83, boasted how police were “facilitating” her protests despite one officer being seriously injured in a crash while responding to a demonstration;
3. Recruits are told to consider themselves being lied to if they are told that their protests are blocking an emergency service vehicle;
4. MEMBERS are urged to avoid saying the word “leader” when at demonstrations to avoid arrest on a conspiracy charge;
5. THE group tries to get the police to arrest as many as possible to overwhelm the officers;
6. BIZARRE training sessions prepare recruits to deal with abuse from bystanders and involve role playing where some pretend to be blocking vehicles.
Just Stop Oil has caused widespread disruption with its protests over the past two years.
His supporters have staged drydocks on motorways, stuck to buildings and roads, damaged artwork and even brought down a World Snooker Championship match this month with a spray paint protest.
The Met spent £7.5m in just nine weeks in the autumn of last year to control the JSO protests.
And in November, a Met boss said 12,000 shifts had been dedicated to clearing roads and patrolling motorways to limit disruption.
But the movement is determined for more protests and is training recruits in a large, anonymous-looking office block in Dalston.
It is believed to cost £2,000 a month to rent and is located below residential flats and next to pubs and shops on a strip.
While registering online for pre-session registration, our reporter was asked to watch videos of Extinction Rebellion veteran Rowan Tilly, 65, in which she told the people who follow the example of the suffragist movement.
Showing drawings of a woman throwing missiles at a policeman, he says: “You have suffragettes throwing stones, breaking windows, using fire and arson, etc. The suffragettes won their cause. Let yourself be seduced.”
In 2021, District Judge Michael Bisgrove praised his “sincerity” and “noble” actions when he gave him an absolute discharge when he appeared in court for obstructing the road for the Extinction Rebellion.
Arriving at the building on Tuesday last week, our reporter did not need to show any ID to prove his identity, even though he had printed a ticket at check-in.
Instead, a member of the group told us to go to the back of the building – the front section looked like a working office.
Several of the more than 20 pupils said they had been inspired to attend the session because of the orange paint of the world snooker championships in Sheffield.
The meeting began with a call from a JSO leader, who said his name was Lance, and explained the importance of slow marches and road sit-ins—disruptive tactics the group has used repeatedly.
He said his aim was to recruit more members to stop in London in a day of mass action.
Lance said: “Disruption is very, very important. We need a massive element of that.
“When we get to the point where we have 1,000 marching every day, that’s what we should be aiming for. A thousand every day. Fifty marches every day. So we can shut down London one day. That’s the level of disruption we’re aiming for.
“At the moment we have 100 marching every day. We must continue. We have time to build it.”
Lance talked about how Just Stop Oil needed to be more organized and focused to achieve their goals.
And he added: “Not only do we need to train, we also need to mobilize.
“Slow marches are amazing, mobilizing in marches, what you’re learning to do now is vital.”
He said he wanted 95% of the group’s time to be “training and mobilizing” and the rest to be acting.
Two women then took over, explaining how to avoid being arrested and what to do if you are.
One was Judy Bruce, 83, a veteran activist who has been arrested several times and previously said she would be prepared to go to prison for her beliefs.
She said: “The police facilitate these marches for us, which is really nice.
If a person looks like they’re being arrested, it’s important to stay close to them and shadow them and get involved.
“They need a police officer to protest and when we are in large numbers it makes it very difficult for them.”
But he warned that the police were generally “not on our side” and said “don’t tell them anything”.
The first hour or so was spent figuring out what kind of behavior would be violent, non-violent, and non-violent.
This week JSO members blocked an ambulance on Oxford Street in central London.
But Judy said it was important when members of the public pointed out that an emergency service vehicle was being blocked to recognize they could be lying.
He also said: “No one should be referred to as the leader of the group. This could leave them charged with conspiracy.”
One situation that was discussed was what would happen if they were told that someone had died on the roads as a result of their protests.
Judy said she would be horrified at such a situation.
But one student said, “At the end of the day we’re doing this because we have no choice.”
The recruits were also taught to be relaxed and limp and to lie on the ground while others acting as police tried to drag them away.
And they were told that if someone took down your protest sign not to get angry, chase or fight, but just to let it go.
The training also included training on how to deal with abuse from the public.
The attendees were divided into two groups to represent what it would be like in a real march.
One group was given orange hi-vis jackets and had to pretend they were participating in a march and then walk around a room about 75 feet by 75 feet.
The second half of the group was asked to sit on chairs and wait for the marchers to enter before posing as cars making engine noises.
They were then asked to get up from their chairs and abuse the protesters.
Receivers were given feedback on how they handled shouting and swearing, including insults such as “get a job,” “get a life,” and were told they had caused deaths.
In response to our inquiry, Tory MP Conor Burns said: “The malice of these people is only surpassed by their stupidity.
“I think we’d all be happy together to buy a one-way ticket to Beijing to take them there and see how they deal with their protests there. The public view is clear: they’ve had enough.
“People want to get on with their daily lives without these Neanderthals.
“What has been exposed here is shocking.
“They are clearly not afraid of the police or the law. That is worrying. A strong message needs to be sent to them.
“I fully support any further crackdown on these people.
“They should be dealt with with the full force of the law.”
Conservative MP Nigel Mills said: “This is shocking. This group has cost millions and they are operating in plain sight.
“It’s a shame. They are clearly not afraid of the police. In fact, they seem to think they do a good job of managing them on the march. We have to be tough. Hard-working members of the public are angry and fed up with the huge disruption.”
