Activists deflate tyres on 4x4 cars in Glasgow and accuse drivers of ‘climate violation’

A man whose tyres were deflated said he would have an electric car but has nowhere to charge it

About 60 vehicles had tyres deflated and their drivers were accused of ‘climate violation’ (Getty)

Tyres on scores of vehicles parked in Glasgow have been deflated by climate activists as the Cop26 summit reaches its end.

Fake parking infringement notices that branded the four-wheel-drive cars a “climate violation” have been left on about 60 vehicles in the city’s West End district.

Pharmacist Jamie MacConnacher discovered the two front tyres of his Land Rover had been deflated on Thursday morning.

He told BBC Radio Scotland’s Drivetime programme that several other cars in the area had been targeted.

He said: “I don’t think targeting individuals that have these vehicles is the right way to do it. They don’t know what the reason for somebody having that car is.”

Mr MacConnacher said he needs his Land Rover to drive to his job as a pharmacist 25 miles to Aberfoyle in Stirlingshire, and because he often drives through “challenging conditions” in winter.

He said the flat tyres made him 45 minutes late for work, but added that the consequences could have been “quite significant” for his patients, a number of whom are at the end of their lives in palliative care.

Mr MacConnacher added: “I understand that there is a need for change, I’m totally for that. I would have an electric car but it’s the logistics in the West End of Glasgow. There’s nowhere to charge outside your flat so it just doesn’t work for me.”

A flyer left on Mr MacConnacher’s vehicle said his car was “driving the climate breakdown”, mainly in poor countries.

Lawyer Victoria Young vented her frustration over her front tyre being completely deflated.

She tweeted: “To the idiots who did this to my car as I’m trying to get to Paisley High Court this morning, did it ever occur to you that the driver might have to use their vehicle in an emergency? It’s being reported to @PoliceScotland.”

A number of other social media users questioned whether the activists could tell if any of the 4x4 cars ran on fuel, electricity, or were hybrid models.

Activist group Tyred of SUVs – part of Glasgow Calls Out Polluters – claimed responsibility, saying they had deflated tyres of around 60 vehicles in the “rich neighbourhood”.

The group said that no tyres were damaged in the action.

They added, according to the BBC: “If 4x4 drivers were a nation, they’d be the seventh biggest polluters on the planet (Source: International Energy Agency). If the 1% won’t take responsibility for the climate destruction they wreak, we’ll make them.”

Fin, a member of Tyred of SUVs, told BBC Radio Scotland: “This is a minor inconvenience that is not going to disrupt them in a huge way. What is really going to disrupt people’s lives and kill them is the climate crisis caused by rich people – basically SUV owners.”

Police Scotland said the force is aware of the incidents and that it has increased patrols in Glasgow’s West End.