Big Green Clampdown

Police today set up road blocks around a music festival site to keep thousands of environmental campaigners away from one of Britain's longest-running festivals.

Up to 15,000 people had begun to gather for the Big Green Gathering in the Mendip hills, Somerset, which was officially due to start on Wednesday. But organisers were forced to cancel it on legal advice yesterday after the police took out an injunction to prevent the festival going ahead.

Festival directors today accused the police of taking a politically motivated decision to shut down the festival on the grounds that it attracts environmental activists and would have raised money for a major climate change demonstration, Climate Camp, to be held next month.

"It was a premeditated political decision made at least a week ago. There were going to be people from the Climate Camp here as well as Plane Stupid. It could be seen by police as gathering ground of radicals," said festival chairman Brig Oubridge .

The Big Green Gathering spun out of the first Glastonbury festivals and has been running in its present form since 1994 without complaints about public safety or crime. It features music, debates and practical green living demonstrations.

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...free radicals with time on their hands are advised by THIS Facebook group to join in solidarity with the workers at Vestas Blade factory on the Isle of Wight who are going to court due to their week long sit in – on Wed 29 Jul, Vestas will try to take out an injunction to evict the occupiers of the plant in Newport. Around 25 workers have occupied the factory which is set to close on Thu 31 Jul 09, losing 600 green jobs.

Vestas makes wind turbine blades for onshore windfarms...

We need radical change, we need renewable energy, we need to work in solidarity with the workers.

There's a pot of tea and revolution brewing. Be the change, be the camp, bring a tent.

Get down to the Isle of Wight pronto. Invite all your mates. And when you get there, check out the Vestas Workers Support Committee to find out how you can help.