ESSO CALLS POLICE TO STOP STAFF VOTE ON CLIMATE CHANGE - BUT MAJORITY STILL SAY YES

5 December 1997

85% of Esso staff arriving for work this morning voted that the company should take responsibility for protecting the climate from the effects of fossil fuels. Of the 104 members of staff who arrived before 0900, 88 walked through the 'Yes' door and only 16 through the 'No' door.

Esso then asked the police to stop the vote from carrying on.

The question was: "Esso should take responsibility for protecting the climate - yes or no?" They were also able to vote, along with the public, in a secret ballot, which will be counted later today. The police, in consultation with Esso, ordered the removal of the Yes and No voting apparatus but allowed the ballot box, banner and leafleters to remain. Members of the public stopped to cast their vote and the collection of ballot papers will continue throughout the day.

Climate Campaigner Liz Pratt said of the result, "Its shameful of Esso to try and stifle this vote - they should listen to what their staff have to say, not try and hide from it. I believe the ongoing ballot will reveal the extent of staff concerns about the issue of climate change - after all it affects everyone".

This is the eighth day of the Greenpeace protest outside Esso's London offices designed to highlight the role of the oil company in trying to derail the Kyoto climate summit. On each day staff are provided with different information about climate change and the vote has been trailed all week so that staff were ready to make their decision.

Liz Pratt, "We've had a really good response from staff over the last couple of weeks. They've got used to seeing us here and are increasingly keen to talk to us, although not always within sight of their office!"

Despite the attempts by Esso to derail the Climate Convention negotiations, support for action on climate change is growing. A wide range of environmental, ethical investment and energy providing organisations, including the insurance Company National Prudential Investments (NPI), the Co-op Bank and the Body Shop, have signed a joint statement on climate change. In the statement sent to Tony Blair, they state that "Industrialised nations cannot credibly continue to expand production and use of fossil fuels - the principal source of climate changing pollution - and on the other hand, to advocate reducing carbon dioxide emissions."

In addition to signing the statement, initiated by Greenpeace, NPI has also written to all companies involved in the Global Climate Coalition, which NPI has at some time invested in. The letter asks the companies to justify their involvement in the Coalition, of which Esso is a prominent member. BP withdrew from the GCC earlier this year.

'Essowatch' will continue for the remaining days of the Climate Summit in Kyoto, which ends on December 10th. Next week it will focus on the future with information and displays on renewable energy.

Copies of the Joint Statement signed by NPI available on request.

For Further Information

Contact Greenpeace Press Office on 0171 865 8255/6/7/8