A retired member of the clergy has appeared in court this week charged with damage to property after he glued himself to the entrance to News Corp UK in London, in protest at Rupert Murdoch.
71-year-old Rev Tim Hewes blames Murdoch, the owner of News Corp internationally, for what he sees as "the catastrophic impact Rupert Murdoch and News Corp has had on tackling climate chaos."
On Tuesday, the retired Church of England priest in the Diocese of Oxford glued his hand to the door of the News UK offices by London Bridge station whilst wearing a face mask that looked as if he had sewn his lips together.
The News UK buildings is home to newspapers The Sun, The Times and The Sunday Times.
In a statement Rev Tim said:
"My hope is that by drawing attention to this, the Prime Minister will renounce Rupert Murdoch, and act drastically and dramatically to put solar panels on new build houses, to insulate social housing, to cancel the gas field and the coal mine, to free himself from the suffocating grip that Murdoch has on him. I hope that News UK employees will pressure the company to attempt reparation and champion the transition from a carbon economy, unequivocally.
"I hope for a rigorous discussion about the catastrophic impact Rupert Murdoch and News Corp has had on tackling climate chaos. Everyone who enters the News UK building must take responsibility on what has been happening."
Reverend Tim held placards with: 'Murdoch did this: muted climate science'.
News Corp has been accused in the past of publishing articles that promote the denial of climate change, particularly in Australia, and creating scepticism about the sustainable solutions.
The company says it has cut its carbon footprint internationally by 40 per cent since 2006 and reports on its website:
"Our titles campaign for environmental change and have run a number of pieces for readers on how to be greener, recycle more and reduce waste. We know that 82 per cent of Sun readers are keen to make their lives greener with the title launching its Green Team campaign to encourage readers to reduce their waste, meat consumption, plastic use, and to recycle, reuse and repair more.
"Meanwhile, The Times' 'Clean Air for All' campaign launched in May 2019 with a set of bold targets designed to help save lives and reduce new cases of lung and heart disease."