Just Stop Oil activist Lucy Porter undeterred after fine

Lucy Porter was among five Just Stop Oil activists who glued themselves to a £3.6million copy of da Vinci’s The Last Supper at the Royal Academy of Arts, in July last year.

They also spray-painted the words ‘no new oil’ on a wall underneath the painting.

Following a two-day trial at City of London Magistrates’ Court, the group were ordered to pay £486 each, after a judge found they had caused £180 of damage.

Activist Lucy Porter was fined after gluing herself to a painting (Image: PA WIRE)

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But Porter said: “It won’t put me off taking part in similar protests.

"For 50 years plus, people have been using ‘legitimate’ means of getting their voices heard - voting, petitions, writing to MPs - it has not worked.

“People are dying right now, we are losing 200 species a day, and this summer will be the hottest the UK has ever experienced.”

She said that 15 days after the protest, the UK experienced the hottest day on record.

'We are breaking nature's laws'

“This will become worse year after year and our government is signing off new fossil fuel licences,” she said.

“Multi-breadbasket failures are happening across the globe, our water is becoming more toxic.

“The people in power are supporting the billionaires to continue this. I couldn't sleep at night if I were just to sit back and be a bystander.

“I was a teacher and I am a mother to an amazing young woman and I need to fight for their right to survive.”

READ MORE: 

• Malvern Just Stop Oil protester glues herself to The Last Supper
• Malvern woman sentenced for gluing herself to £3.6 million painting

Porter said she agreed with fellow activist Simon Bramwell that Leonardo da Vinci himself would have backed the protest.

“da Vinci once said: ‘Nature never breaks her own laws’, but we are breaking nature’s laws, and we can see how the web of life is breaking down.

“The protest was definitely worth it, our press are failing us - they are not reporting on this crisis.

“People don't realise how fragile our food and water supplies are, or how many people are dying now, for the profit of a powerful few and for costs of around £500 we got media around the globe talking about the situation.”