News / Patrick Hart
Vigil against jailed doctor’s ‘politically motivated’ sentence
Nearly 100 people, including patients and colleagues, were seen at a vigil in support of a jailed doctor.
Most held banners with Dr Patrick Hart’s pictures and messages in support of him while protesting at the Cascade Steps.
Hart, a Bristol GP was convicted of criminal damage in October 2024 after he used a hammer and chisel to crack pumps at a petrol station on the M25 during a Just Stop Oil protest in August 2022. He was sentenced in January 2025 to 12 months and subsequently also handed a suspension from practising medicine for 12 months.
Colleagues, patients and fellow protestors have argued that his sentencing has raised “urgent ethical questions” as Hart is the first medical professional in the UK to be facing such a punishment.
Most posters urged for the release of Hart
One of Hart’s colleagues, Peter Lilley was also at the protest hoping to call action against his “unjust” prison sentence.
He added: “It was for a peaceful protest, trying to highlight the catastrophic health hazards that are being caused by the oil and gas industry at the moment.
“I think we have to ask when trusted, healthcare professionals are being sent to jail in this way – who are the government and the judiciary really protecting? Is it us the citizens or is it actually the profits of polluting multinational corporations?”
Lilley went on to emphasise that a looming threat remains over Hart’s career as a medical professional, with an interim suspension being handed to him by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service and the danger of a longer one or removal also possible.
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He added: “The tribunal is saying that he has brought the profession into disrepute but that I think from the turnout today we can see that actually the public are behind Dr Hart.
“They share his concerns and they support his actions and his right to peaceful protest.”
Former mayor of Bristol, George Ferguson also rallied his support for Hart’s release.
He said: “As a society, we face a pivotal question. Will history remember doctors who stood against the destruction of the health of our planet as criminals, or as ethical leaders who fulfilled their duty to protect life? We should celebrate Bristol’s history of protest – and all those willing to take personal risks for the greater good.”
Lilley who has visited Hart in the prison says that he continues to remain “resilient” despite the difficult circumstances.
“I have been to visit him and spoken to him on the phone. It has opened my eyes to the fact that the prison system is not fit for purpose, is incredibly busy and overloaded.
“This just further highlights why it doesn’t make sense for him to be in prison at this time and it seems like a very extraordinary sentence and one that seems politically motivated.”
All photos: Rob Browne
Video: Karen Johnson
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