3 minute read
The Jockey Club have been successful in their application for a High Court injunction against Animal Rising protestors at Epsom next weekend.
The Animal Rising protestors successfully breached the boundary of Aintree racecourse and delayed the start of the Grand National in April and had made clear their intention to undertake similar activity ahead of the Epsom Derby.
The injunction prohibits individuals from entering onto the racetrack and carrying out acts with the intention and/or effect of disrupting the races.
Any individuals found conducting these activities could be subject to a fine and/or imprisonment.
The Jockey Club's chief executive, Nevin Truesdale, said: "Our number one priority will always be to ensure that the safety of all our equine and human participants and racegoers, officials and our own employees is not compromised.
"Animal Rising have repeatedly made it explicitly clear that they intend to break the law and disrupt The Derby Festival and that left us with no choice but to seek this injunction, having consulted with a number of stakeholders including Surrey Police.
"We will never tolerate a repeat of the illegal disruption we saw at Aintree on Grand National day and we welcome today's High Court ruling, which provides us with an additional layer of security to combat the threat of such dangerous and reckless behaviour.
"We believe everyone should have the right to peaceful protest and have offered Animal Rising an area near the entrance of Epsom Downs racecourse to express their views in a law-abiding way. However, anyone who attempts to disrupt the race or compromise the safety of horses or humans will be dealt with robustly by our security teams and the police.
"As such I now urge Animal Rising to abandon any plans to breach security at The Derby Festival and respect the legitimate right of the thousands of people who will join us at Epsom Downs and the millions of people watching at home and around the world to enjoy the sport they love uninterrupted."
