SOMERSET Council Liberal Democrat leader Cllr Bill Revans has denied supporting a Just Stop Oil (JSO) activist who has been jailed for more than two years for helping to cause havoc for motorists on London’s M25.

Cllr Revans gave £100 toward the legal costs of fellow Cllr Mick Dunk, a Green Party member, who was sentenced to 26 months in prison and ordered to pay £4,380 in costs for his part in a series of JSO protests which brought the M25 to a standstill in November, 2022.

A Crowdfunding appeal for Cllr Dunk has since raised more than £5,000 to cover the costs and go toward the expense of an appeal.

A host of leading Somerset Lib Dem councillors contributed to the fund-raising, including Cllr Revans, who denied that he was financially supporting criminal actions.

Cllr Revans said: “I can confirm I have made a donation of £100 toward the Crowdfund raiser for Mick Dunk in a personal capacity, not as leader of Somerset Council, as I do to support many local, national, and international causes.

“This appeal is to go towards Mick’s appeal against his sentence and toward his legal costs.

“I have made it clear that I do not condone or support his criminal actions.

“I disagree with the excessive sentence that has been handed out, as I have said in my statement on my social media feed.”

Somerset executive Cllr Richard Wilkins, who is responsible for highways issues, also contributed £25, saying he did not condone Cllr Dunk’s actions but believed his sentence was harsh.

Cllr Wilkins did not respond to a request for a comment on his support for Cllr Dunk.

Bridgwater’s Conservative MP Sir Ashley Fox expressed concern that Cllrs Revans and Wilkins had given the impression they supported unlawful activity with their donations.

Sir Ashley said: “It is welcome that these tough sentences have brought an end to the recent motorway protests and contributed to Just Stop Oil collapsing as a movement.

“The individuals involved might reflect on the fact that the UK has already cut its CO2 emissions by half since 1990, while countries such as China and India continue to build coal fired power stations at scale.

“If they want to make a global impact, perhaps they should direct their demonstrations there.

“I have always defended the right to peaceful protest, but deliberately causing chaos on major roads, stopping people from reaching weddings, funerals, job interviews, and hospital appointments is not lawful and never should be.

“Residents deserve clarity.

“What is Somerset Council’s position.

“Does it support unlawful activity that causes chaos on our roads or does it stand with the law abiding public.”

A council spokesperson said: “Cllr Dunk’s disqualification from holding office does not take effect immediately upon conviction, but only applies after the period for lodging an appeal has expired, or if he lodges an appeal, after the conclusion of the appeal and he is unsuccessful.

“Cllr Dunk remains a councillor unless he chooses to resign and decides not to appeal against the conviction and sentence.”