Today at 7 AM, a group of 60 people closed all the entrances to Lloyd’s of London’s building in the City of London. This is the first time XR has closed down a financial institution completely for a whole day. They chained or glued themselves to doors, then dropped huge banners reading ‘Lloyd’s insure climate breakdown’ and ‘End Fossil Fuels Now’.

They were joined by the Dirty Scrubbers, Tea Ladies, CorpRats and Orchestrated Discontent who were there to expose Lloyd’s filthy business dealings, followed by samba drummers who arrived to keep the energy alive. 

How bad is Lloyd’s of London?

Lloyd’s insures 40% of the world’s energy, including some of the world’s worst fossil fuel projects such as coal mines, tar sands pipelines, and new oil & gas exploration. Their business is fuelling Climate Breakdown. 

Without insurance, a fossil fuel project can’t go ahead. Companies like Lloyd’s, who insure these projects, are effectively enabling them. This is why the insurance industry is such a key player.

Most insurers have started to phase out fossil fuel support. Not Lloyd’s. By pressuring it, we can cut another lifeline of the fossil fuel industry.

Solidarity with the Land Protectors

We are doing this action in solidarity with the Land Protectors trying to stop The Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion (TMX) in Western Canada. That pipeline would triple the export capacity for tar sands, one of the dirtiest oils in the world. In addition, it does not have consent from Indigenous peoples whose lands it goes through.

The Land Protectors resisting TMX have been using their bodies to block the construction. They have asked Rebels to join their struggle by demanding Lloyd’s of London stop insuring the project.

Led by Traditional Owners’ people across the world have pressured 16 insurers to cut ties with the project. Lloyd’s must do the same now.

Lloyd’s, tell the truth!

One of the Rebels taking part in the action said: “The Lloyd’s building is a great example of bowellism architecture, which shows the bowels of the building on the outside, things we usually hide: pipes, sewage, stairways. And it’s what we’re asking Lloyd’s to do: tell the truth about what’s going on inside this building, the dirty work they’re doing.”

Lloyd’s has always been a pillar of support of extractive colonialism – the economic domination of mainly global south countries by global north imperialist forces. This includes sugar, tobacco, coffee, slaves, and eventually fossil fuels. 

By insuring fossil fuels projects, Lloyd’s support, enable, and cover some of the world’s worst polluting industries such as tar sands, arctic oil and gas drilling, and coal mines, none of which are compatible with keeping global warming to a maximum of 1.5C.

We’re asking Lloyd to stop insuring fossil fuels companies and insure climate justice instead.

No arrests were made during this action.