Arriving at 7am, they barricaded the entrances to the building at Blakelands with sick bay furniture and set up a diesel pollution clinic outside to offer advice and health checks to staff and members of the public.
Greenpeace is demanding Volkswagen commit to stop producing diesel cars and go 100% electric.
Mel Evans, clean air campaigner at Greenpeace, said: “As the UK’s biggest seller of diesel cars, Volkswagen is complicit in an air pollution crisis that is filling up emergency departments and GP surgeries.
“Volkswagen must face up to its responsibility for deadly air pollution and commit to end diesel production now.”
Volkswagen sells the most diesel cars in the UK; one in five new diesel cars are VW Group.
More than two-thirds of people believe car companies should be held to account for toxic diesel pollution and be made to contribute to a Clean Air Fund, according to a poll released by Greenpeace today.
The peaceful blockade at VW’s UK head office comes as concerns are growing about the health impacts of air pollution. A recent study found an “absolutely clear” link between episodes of high air pollution and spikes in hospital admissions and visit to GPs.
Dr Aarash Saleh, a specialist respiratory medicine, joined the protest at Volkswagen UK headquarters. He said: “Diesel pollution is causing horrendous suffering across the UK and storing up a lifetime of troubled health for our kids. If you could see it, diesel would be banned tomorrow.”
In September 2017 Greenpeace launched the campaign targeting VW’s continued promotion of polluting diesel by blocking a major import route bringing Volkswagen diesel cars into the UK.
