Extinction Rebellion blockade arms fair at Telford International Centre

Around a dozen protesters blocked the main vehicle entrance and pedestrian entrances to the site at 8am with activists chaining themselves together and to fences. 

During the protest six people were arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass.

Superintendent Nigel Webster of West Mercia Police said: “We respect the right to peaceful protest, however, where criminal offences are committed we will take action against those suspected of being involved.

“I would like to thank the local community for their understanding and co-operation as we responded to the protest.”

Telford’s flagship convention centre is hosting the controversial Specialist Defence & Security Convention UK (SDSC-UK) over the 1st and 2nd of November. Previously the arms fair was held at the Three Counties Showground in Malvern, where it faced extensive protests from the public over several years. 

Kris Welch, from Broseley, who blocked the entrance, says:

“I’m here today because I can’t sit back and watch as my town hosts this despicable event. Innocent civilians, including thousands of children, are being slaughtered right now in Gaza, Ukraine and elsewhere in the world by weapons sold at conventions just like this one. SDSC-UK is part of a global arms trade that has blood on its hands. Telford residents don’t want this arms fair in our town. We are disappointed that the Telford International Centre accepted the booking, putting profit before ethics.”

Sal Mager, a 57-year-old archivist from Shrewsbury, says:

“The military-industrial sector will be the death of us. Militaries account for an estimated 5.5% of global greenhouse emissions. But due to a loophole in the Paris Agreement, the world’s armed forces do not have to publish emissions figures and are excluded from COP emissions reductions targets.

"Meanwhile, countries on the frontline of the climate crisis face a huge rise in armed conflict as the planet overheats. The United Nations has described climate breakdown as a ‘threat multiplier’ that has the power to stoke tensions over increasingly scarce resources, from fresh water to arable land.”

The Telford International Centre’s decision to host the arms fair has already caused huge public outcry. Last month, campaigners from Stop SDSC-UK presented a letter to the centre calling on them to cancel the arms fair. It was signed by scores of individual signatories, as well as religious and community leaders, business people, and military veterans.

Catherine Maguire, a 73 year old retired teacher and biologist, says: 

“As temperatures soar and extreme weather events destroy crops, homes, and livelihoods, we are at a turning point in human history.

"We can’t win the battle against climate breakdown if we continue to fight among ourselves.

"That’s why we’re here today, ordinary people calling on the Telford International Centre to join us on the right side of history. Stop supporting SDSC-UK. The people of Telford do not want these merchants of death and destruction in our town.”

Today’s non-violent protest will be followed tomorrow by a rally involving a coalition of groups including Extinction Rebellion, Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT), Quakers from Telford, Wolverhampton, and Malvern; and representatives from several local trade union branches.