Two more arrests over MP's office protest

Two more people have been arrested after an MP's office was targeted in a demonstration against a new coal mine.

Mark Jenkinson's constituency base in Maryport was covered in posters reading "Stop Tory Coal" at about 08:10 BST on Friday.

Protest group Just Stop Oil said opening a new mine in Cumbria was "total madness", but Mr Jenkinson dubbed the protesters "spoilt, middle-class climate clowns".

Cumbria Police confirmed a total of four women had been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage.

All have been released on bail while investigations continue.

Permission for a mine near Whitehaven was granted in December 2022, making it the first new coal mine to be approved in 30 years.

At the time, critics argued it would undermine climate change targets, while supporters welcomed promised jobs.

Mr Jenkinson, who is the Conservative MP for Workington, hit out at the protesters, calling them "plonkers" in a social media post.

Speaking to the BBC on Friday, he described them as "entitled morons who think they are above the law".

He added: “Unfortunately, the film on the glass has been scratched and some of the paintwork damaged."

In a statement, Just Stop Oil questioned whether Mr Jenkinson's tirade in response to their actions was the "standard of adolescent response" constituents deserved.

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