A Portland councillor who took part in a protest against fuel poverty has been granted a temporary reprieve after a London Crown Court jury failed to reach a majority verdict.

Councillor Giovanna Lewis was among a group of Insulate Britain activists charged with causing a public nuisance in relation to a roadblock at Bishopsgate on October 25 2021.

The protest was held as part of an ongoing Insulate Britain campaign which, it says, hopes to bring about legislative change, with the aim of forcing the Government to take action over cold, poorly-insulated homes. 

Cllr Lewis, 65, Amy Pritchard, 37, a horticultural worker from London, and Paul Sheeky, a 47-year-old project manager from Cheshire, have been on trial this week at Inner London Crown Court.

Yesterday, following 12 hours of deliberation, the jury announced it could not agree on a majority verdict.

All three defendants must now wait until March 31 to find out whether the Crown Prosecution Service intends to launch a retrial.

The verdict comes after Judge Silas Reid imposed a restriction banning the defendants from mentioning fuel poverty, insulation or the climate emergency as a defence, or from talking about their motivations for stopping traffic.

According to a statement by Insulate Britain, Judge Reid told the protesters that - while they might genuinely believe that they had been performing a public good and not a public nuisance – "it is for history to judge and not the jury."

One Insulate Britain activist has already been jailed for contempt of court after breaking such restrictions.

On February 7, David Nixon was sentenced to eight weeks in prison after he spoke about UK fuel poverty deaths and the climate crisis during his court case, which was held in relation to the same roadblock attended by cllr Lewis.

In December three defendants who took part in the protest were acquitted of public nuisance charges, while so far this year twelve others have been found guilty.

Two trials so far have resulted in acquittals, four have resulted in a guilty verdict and two have been deferred.

Insulate Britain said the Crown Prosecution Service has summoned a total of 56 protesters to court over charges of public nuisance. 

These trials are planned to be heard across Inner London, Hove, Lewes and Reading Crown Courts.