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Portsmouth protesters march against Aquind Cross-Channel cable

Paul Gonella Protesters in PortsmouthPaul Gonella
Protesters met at 10:00 BST in Southsea and walked 12 miles of the proposed cable route

Dozens of protesters have marched against a planned £1.2bn electricity link between England and France.

Aquind Ltd wants to lay a 238km (148 mile) cable between Lovedean in Hampshire and Normandy, which would run through Portsmouth.

The company said the two-way link could supply cheaper, greener electricity.

Campaigners walked 12 miles (19km) along the proposed route of the cable in protest. They said the project would damage the environment.

Michael Mitas MP Stephen Morgan with protestersMichael Mitas
MP Stephen Morgan, pictured with the microphone, has started a petition against the Aquind project

The protesters were joined by both of Portsmouth's MPs - the Conservative's Penny Mordaunt and Labour's Stephen Morgan.

Mr Morgan has launched a petition urging for the scheme to be rejected and said it would be "a disaster for Portsmouth".

Ms Mordaunt added that it would "make our country less resilient and damage Portsmouth's economy and environment".

Aquind has previously said the planned interconnector could supply up to 5% of the UK's energy needs.

It added that it would focus on minimising the impact the installation of the underground cables would have.

A final decision on the project will be made by the secretary of state in September.

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