CLIMATE activists in Oswestry were back out campaigning on Saturday as they conducted a socially-distanced protest.

Members of the Oswestry Extinction Rebellion group protested in isolation as well as in socially-distanced formations at some of Oswestry’s well-known landmarks.

The group is urging the government for a Citizens Assembly to decide the country’s future together during the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Group members want to ensure the government prioritises people and the planet over profit.

Cathy Allen, a member of Extinction Rebellion Oswestry, believes the country’s response to the pandemic has shown that change is possible.

She said: “The coronavirus has shown us what’s possible when the political will is there. Everything can change.

“Although there might not be a clear way out of either of these two huge disasters, we know one thing for sure: there can be no going back to the way things were.”

Oswestry’s protest was part of actions taking place at the same time all around the country – including Parliament Square in London – and were carefully designed so that people were physically distanced at three metres apart, with everyone being asked to wear masks.

In adherence to current government health and safety guidelines, people arrived alone or in pairs.

A spokesman for the group added: “We have seen Shropshire Council was able to act quickly in response to COVID-19.

“Yet, in relation to the local ecological and climate issues, they seem to be sleepwalking.

“As Extinction Rebellion Shrewsbury recently commented, what they have done since they declared a climate emergency a year ago is tantamount to rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic.

“As the government begins to ease lockdown and reopen the economy, Extinction Rebellion will stand in defiance of going back to business as usual, saying there can be no going back to the way things were.”

Shropshire Council has been approached for comment.