Ten people arrested following Forth Road Bridge protest
The protest organised by Greenpeace UK involved a number of activists who suspended themselves from the bridge using ropes and was reported to police around 1.05pm.
Five men, aged between 35 and 40, and five women, aged between 25 and 42, were arrested in connection and further enquiries are ongoing.
Police said that the bridge was re-opened around 11am.
Amy Cameron, Programme Director at Greenpeace UK said: 'We've achieved what we set out to. By blocking INEOS, we've drawn global attention to the company's bottomless appetite for plastic production, false solutions and profit for its billionaire boss Jim Ratcliffe.
'Their feeble suggestion that recycling and managing waste can hand them a free pass to go on producing more plastic forever is laughable. It comes from the same industry playbook as the health benefits of smoking and carbon offsetting.
'The plastic pollution problem is just too massive. Less than 10% of plastic is currently recycled globally, and this is set to rise to just 17% by 2060, while the amount of plastic we're producing is set to triple. The only solution is to address the problem at source which means securing a strong Global Plastics Treaty that imposes legally-binding caps on plastic production.
'INEOS are cutting jobs at Grangemouth while trying to open a massive new plastics plant in Belgium, leaving Scottish workers high and dry. If Jim Ratcliffe really cared about skilled jobs in Scotland he'd invest his billions in supporting his workers to transition into the green industries of the future, instead of throwing money at Formula 1 racing teams and football clubs.'
'Contrary to INEOS' claims, the protest was both safe and caused minimal disruption. The climbers are all highly-trained and spent weeks rehearsing this action to ensure it was safe. They were supported at all times by rescue climbers and support boats. The Forth Road Bridge carries low volumes of bus, bicycle and pedestrian traffic and was closed by Police Scotland – not by the protest directly.'
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