Yesterday we occupied Admiralty Arch where the government is using illegally logged plywood from the rainforests of Papua New Guinea as hoardings around the building. Fourteen protestors sat on top of the Arch, demanding Tony Blair own up and commit to legislation banning imports of illegal timber into the UK.
Around lunchtime, the Cabinet Office (which is housed in the Arch) issued a statement saying they only use wood from sustainable sources and that they have a contract with Allenbuild, the company carrying out the construction work, to that effect.
Smelling a rat, we challenged the government to show us the evidence proving the legality and sustainability of the timber used in the refurbishment. We don't believe any such documents exist.
All afternoon we waited for the Cabinet Office to provide evidence of the legality and sustainability of the plywood being used on site, but our wait was in vain. We didn't receive a single thing. A journalist also asked for this proof and was told the Cabinet Office's fax machine wasn't working, neither could they be emailed. However, he was assured that the government was "concerned" about our allegations and promised to look into them.
Waiting with us was Sam Moko, a customary landowner and Greenpeace campaigner from Papua New Guinea, who came to London to explain personally what the illegal timber trade is doing to his country. He took his message - 'Dear Tony, you've just trashed another rainforest', written on a sheet of plywood made from timber ripped from the Papuan forests - straight to Blair at 10 Downing Street. Watch Sam describe the threat his country faces for unscrupulous loggers on our moblog.
So at 7.10pm, after more than 12 hours at the top of Admiralty Arch, our protestors climbed down. Stephen Tindale, executive director of Greenpeace UK who had been on the Arch all day, had a few choice words to say.
"It's scandalous that Tony Blair, who claims to be a champion of the environment, is fuelling the destruction of Papua New Guinea's rainforests - one of the most important habitats on the planet. It's obvious that the government hasn't got a leg to stand on, and we've now proven our claims. It's time for Tony Blair to ban the import of this illegal timber."
This is now the third time we have exposed the government's use of dodgy timber on official building sites, and if Ken Livingstone can come clean about illegal timber around Nelson's Column, why can't they? The government must finally take effective action and tighten up its timber policy to stop this of from happening again.
