REG - UK Oil & Gas PLC - Judge upholds injunction against unlawful protest
RNS Number : 5402OUK Oil & Gas PLC10 February 2021UK Oil & Gas PLC
("UKOG" or the "Company")
Judge upholds injunction against unlawful protest
UK Oil & Gas PLC (London AIM: UKOG) is pleased to announce that the High Court has upheld the Company's injunction against unlawful protest at the Horse Hill site near Gatwick Airport.
Having conducted a comprehensive review of the case, the Judge, Mrs. Justice Falk DBE found, yesterday, that:
· There was a sufficiently real and imminent risk to justify the interim injunction order and its revised scope (see the Company's 5th February RNS), which prohibits trespass to the site's land, obstruction of the main entrance and lorry surfing.
· The injunction is a reasonable and proportionate restriction on protesters' activities. The order does not prevent slow walking or simply standing outside the site, provided that this does not physically obstruct anybody entering or leaving the site.
· The Injunction should be extended to include six named protesters associated with Extinction Rebellion ("XR"). In addition, two named XR protestors, who trespassed into the site on 10th October 2020, offered undertakings to the court to abide by the terms of the injunction in return for UKOG not seeking to pursue committal for a breach of the injunction.
The injunction remains in force until a final two-day trial, to be scheduled between June and October 2021.
Stephen Sanderson, UKOG Chief Executive, commented:
"UKOG welcomes Mrs. Justice Falk's thorough review and for her clear finding that the making of the revised Injunction order was fully justified. UKOG has never sought to obstruct any peaceful protest, or curb the right to freedom of expression, solely to restrain unlawful activities that impede its staff's right to go about their lawful business. This ruling now makes it clear that acts of trespass, obstruction of the site's entrance and vehicle surfing do not constitute lawful protest under the right to freedom of expression. We trust that protesters will abide by this ruling."
For further information, please contact:
UK Oil & Gas PLC
Stephen Sanderson / Kiran Morzaria
Tel: 01483 941493
WH Ireland Ltd (Nominated Adviser and Broker)
James Joyce / James Sinclair-Ford
Tel: 020 7220 1666
Communications
Brian Alexander
Tel: 01483 941493
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy Policy.ENDMSCLKLLBFLLLBBB
Recent news on UK Oil & Gas
See all newsREG - UK Oil & Gas PLC - Notice of Annual General Meeting
AnnouncementREG - UK Oil & Gas PLC - Employee Benefit Trust Share Subscription
AnnouncementREG - UK Oil & Gas PLC - Loan Reduction Update
AnnouncementREG - UK Oil & Gas PLC - Loxley Gas Project Update
AnnouncementREG - AIM - AIM Notice - 26/04/2024
Announcement