Activists with Extinction Rebellion (XR) targeted the now closed branch of Barclays bank in New Malden this weekend to highlight the bank's links to the fossil fuel industry and the climate crisis.

On Saturday (August 14), a day after Barclays in New Malden closed down, signs were draped by XR Kingston members over the shuttered entrances to the bank.

They bore slogans like "Barclays greed is destroying our futures", while a handwritten note was also taped to a cashpoint outside.

Surrey Comet: Image: XR Kingston via TwitterImage: XR Kingston via Twitter

Charlotte, an XR Kingston member, told the Surrey Comet about the group's motivation for the protest ahead of wider 'Rebellion' promised Extinction Rebellion activists in London next week.

"Barclays is the worst funder of the fossil fuels in Europe. Now, with the IPCC report, we can see what we're headed for. Even without looking at that, the world is literally on fire at the moment: Siberia, Algeria, Europe, I think the climate crisis is now coming home to people because it's affecting for example places where people might have visited on holiday. Of course we've had floods here, Japan has floods, China had almost year's worth of rainfall in a single day. I think the effects are now becoming evident. When you consider all of that and then you have a bank that's still investing in fossil fuels, it's just ridiculous."

The climate activist quoted research published by the Market Forces NGO, which showed that Barclays was the "biggest financier of fossil fuels in Europe and the seventh-largest in the world", having "financed around US $145 billion in fossil fuels" since 2015 — the year the landmark Paris Climate Agreement was signed.

She also referenced the UN IPCC's stunning new report on the climate crisis, which dubbed the global heating being witnessed around the world "Code Red" for humanity, warning there is precious little time to decarbonize the world economy to mitigate the most catastrophic effects.

The IPCC report said that the climate crisis will bring widespread devastation and extreme weather in the coming years, threaten the global food supply and fuel climate migration in unprecedented numbers.

Barclays currently fund fossil fuel projects that exacerbate the climate crisis, but have said they are changing to accommodate wider green credentials.

Following a similar XR action in neighbouring Kingston that also targeted a branch of the bank, a Barclays spokesperson told the Surrey Comet they are committed to the goals of the Paris Agreement, achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, and touted recent investments in greener energy sources.

"We have made a commitment to align our entire financing portfolio to the goals of the Paris Agreement, with specific targets and transparent reporting, on the way to achieving our ambition to be a net zero bank by 2050.

"We believe that Barclays can make a real contribution to tackling climate change and help accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy."

It is clear for now that climate campaigners like Charlotte are unconvinced by what they have dubbed as the bank's "greenwashing", and want to see an end in all fossil fuel funding much sooner than 2050. Yet they agree that Barclays could make a huge contribution to addressing the climate crisis if chose to.

"It's all too late, it's far too late. They need to stop funding fossil fuels right now. They need to take their money out of those practices. It's just words really. We've got to act now. We're in irreversible climate breakdown, people are dying already. A big business like this, they have got a responsibility and they could make a big difference if they are willing to change," she said.