THE number of arrests in Thurrock connected to the JustStopOil climate protests across the borough is now approaching 200.

And more protesters are reported to have arrived at Askews Farm Lane in Grays thus afternoon (Tuesday, 5 April).

A statement released today from Essex Police says: "A further 20 people have been arrested as part of our response to protests taking place in Grays.

"We continue to approach this incident using a variety of police tactics.

"A group of 17 people were arrested shortly after 4.50pm yesterday, Monday, 4 April, at the junction of Stoneness Road and London Road, during a proactive stop by officers on patrol.

"During a search of the group, officers found a number of items which they believed could be used to cause criminal damage.

"All 17 were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit criminal damage.

"Two other people were arrested last night in connection with the protest during a proactive vehicle stop in Grays.

"One additional arrest was also made when a car was stopped proactively by officers in Grays.

"In total, we have now made 192 arrests in relation to this incident. Of that number, 24 people have been arrested more than once.

"Of all the sites originally affected, all but one are now reporting a complete business as usual function and we continue to engage with a small number of people who remain at one site.

"Our aim is to bring this situation to a swift and safe conclusion."

Essex Police Assistant Chief Constable Rachel Nolan said: "Our response to these protests have now entered the fifth day. Thankfully, we have been able to keep the disruption caused to the affected businesses to a minimum and all but one are now reporting business as usual.

"There is a small number of people who continue to protest, and we are working to resolve this as quickly and – most importantly – as safely as possible.

"We are continuing to work alongside our key partners on this issue and our priority has always been to bring this incident to a safe conclusion and to bring the areas affected back to normality as quickly as possible.

"A large element of that is our proactive response, which again has yielded results in the last 24 hours, with 20 arrests made.

"As a result, no new protests have been reported on any sites in the area.

"I want to again emphasise that policing is not anti-protest; we will always endeavour to facilitate protest where we can.

"However, we must be robust when laws have been broken, that is what our community expects of us. That means making arrests when other options have been exhausted and, where we can, pursuing action against those who we believe have broken the law.

"We are in dialogue with the Crown Prosecution Service, as well as other forces, as we seek to achieve that."