Business Declares is a partner of the The Big One - a major gathering outside Parliament, initiated by Extinction Rebellion with the goal of bringing 100,000 people together in Westminster to demand the ending of all new fossil fuel licences, and to better take into account citizens’ concerns on the climate, ecological and social emergency into democracy and decision making by political leaders. The demonstrations took place from 21st - 24th April 2023.

On 21st April 2023, a coalition of over 350 Business Leaders joined Business Declares to join a mass protest against the government’s plans to license new fossil fuels. 

This coalition of business leaders joined a picket outside of The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to demand that the government stop licensing new fossil fuels and instead back a transition to a fossil fuel free era.

The protest was part of a four-day event, known as “The Big One” organised by Extinction Rebellion (XR) and involving an estimated 100,000 people from over 200 wide-ranging partner organisations ranging from Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth through to Quakers in Britain and The Diocese of London.

This level of protest by the business community is unprecedented in modern times – especially when you consider that most of the business leaders attending had never been to a protest before.

Support for the protest, in our view, is because businesses are increasingly losing patience with the government and many in the business sector have become so frustrated and outraged by the UK government’s drive to licence new fossil fuel licenses, that they feel compelled to show their support for campaigns against this policy.

The business sector clearly recognises that locking the country into fossil fuels will ultimately lead to higher costs, job insecurity and market insecurity – which business hates. But there is also a more fundamental level here too – which is personal, emotional and existential. The science tells us that the world must rapidly shift away from burning fossil fuels — the number one cause of the climate crisis. Leading organisations such as the International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that we needed to end fossil fuel extraction in 2021; leading figures including UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres agree. And of course we all see the more frequent and severe climate events playing out before our eyes, destroying lives and devastating families.

Ben Tolhurst, Director of Business Declares, said: “From a pure economic/business perspective, one of the many consequences of the government’s drive to pursue new fossil fuel sites will be increased uncertainty for businesses around their costs, supply chains and energy security. 

The science is clear. We must stop burning fossil fuels to safeguard humanity and the ecosystems we depend on.  Leading organisations, including The International Energy Agency, are calling for an end to new fossil fuel projects. Despite this, and the fact that the UK government’s own advisors have warned against the UK’s poor state of preparedness for climate impacts, our government is continuing with its non-sensical policy to license over 100 new fossil fuel sites in the UK.  We are calling on the government to shift their policy away from new fossil fuel exploration to a policy and regulatory framework which better enables businesses to support the delivery of a just transition to a fossil fuel free era, thereby creating jobs and safeguarding our livelihoods”.

Two of our member organisations also passed comment.

Guy Singh Watson, CEO of Riverford Organics, said: “The tragedy of our impending self-destruction is that; Citizens are ready to act; Business is ready to act; the technology exists to deliver solutions at a cost most would accept. But only governments can provide the framework for the action that could yet save us”

Bevis Watts, chief executive of Triodos Bank UK who are also a member of Business Declares, said: “The UN and world’s leading climate scientists have issued a final warning that we are on the verge of climate catastrophe. Yet money continues to be funneled into the fossil fuel industry – knowingly driving the world closer to climate disaster. The time for polite challenge and having hushed conversations in back rooms is over. We will not achieve a greener future without coordinated and urgent action from our government.”

The media were extremely interested in the fact that so many business leaders had come out to protest against the government’s policies – articles were featured in a range of print media, as well as short videos.