Protest is the wellspring of democracy – that’s why Labour must repeal the Tories’ draconian laws | George Monbiot

The pernicious, oppressive era of arresting people for holding signs or merely walking down the street must come to an end

How do you know when protest tactics are working? When governments ban them. The oppressive laws introduced by the previous government - the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 and the Public Order Act 2023 - are a tick list of effective political engagement. Everything from locking on and digging tunnels to actions on roads, at airports, oil refineries or newspapers, even marching down a street, has been criminalised. Why? Because these methods work. If they didn't, the government wouldn't have bothered.

The Conservatives justified their draconian measures with the claim that they prevented disruption to the public". But had they cared about disruption, they would have done all they could to prevent climate breakdown. Nothing is more disruptive than the flickering and eventual collapse of Earth systems. If you believe a few people sitting in the street is a major impediment to traffic, take a look at what a sea surge, a flash flood, a windstorm or a rail-buckling, road-melting, bridge-jamming heat event can do to transport infrastructure.

George Monbiot is a Guardian columnist