A GP who was jailed for taking portion successful a Just Stop Oil protestation has been suspended from practising arsenic a doc for 5 months.
Dr Sarah Benn, 57, was sent to situation for 31 days for contempt of tribunal by breaching an injunction not to show extracurricular Kingsbury lipid terminal successful Warwickshire successful 2022.
After a hearing, the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) has present ruled that her fittingness to signifier was impaired.
The GP antecedently said it was her work arsenic a doc to instrumentality portion successful peaceful protests against caller fossil substance projects.
The General Medical Council (GMC), who referred the case, said the hearing was convened owed to the information her actions astatine the terminal broke the instrumentality and damaged nationalist trust.
Dr Sarah Benn, 57, has been suspended from the aesculapian registry for 5 months aft being jailed for 31 days aft she took portion successful a Just Stop Oil protest
Dr Benn, from Birmingham, says she informed the General Medical Council and her leader aft each apprehension and argues that her actions are accordant with aesculapian ethics
Dr Faye Rolfe, for the GMC, said Dr Benn's behaviour had brought the assemblage into disrepute.
But Dr Benn contested the assertion and told the tribunal determination was nary grounds that she had caused patients to suffer spot successful her arsenic a doc oregon the assemblage by the wider public.
In its findings, the MPTS said the GP's actions did not springiness emergence to concerns astir diligent safety.
However, they said there had been 'no acknowledgement from Dr Benn that what she has done by breaking the instrumentality was incorrect and nary grounds that she has taken steps to remediate her actions'.
Her lawsuit volition beryllium reviewed by the tribunal work soon earlier the suspension lapses.
The MPTS proceeding successful Manchester follows Dr Benn's imprisonment aft she was seen connected a writer verge extracurricular the terminal holding a motion which work 'No New Oil'.
The GP was jailed for 31 days aft participating astatine the terminal connected April 26, May 4 and September 14 that twelvemonth successful breach of a civilian injunction.
Dr Benn, from Birmingham, says she informed the General Medical Council and her leader aft each apprehension and argues that her actions are accordant with aesculapian ethics, which prioritise diligent and nationalist information supra all.
Ahead of the hearing, she added: 'I volition beryllium bittersweet and upset if I americium removed from the register, but that volition person nary effect connected my aboriginal plans.
'I volition proceed carrying retired what I judge is my work arsenic agelong arsenic the authorities refuses to perpetrate to stopping lipid and gas.'
She was jailed for 31 days for contempt of tribunal by breaching an injunction not to show extracurricular Kingsbury lipid terminal successful Warwickshire successful 2022
Dr Benn pictured taking portion successful the Just Stop Oil protest. She has been suspended arsenic a GP for 5 months
Three GPs are presently nether scrutiny for clime alteration protests with Dr Benn's lawsuit being the archetypal to beryllium heard.
Dr Emma Runswick, British Medical Association's (BMA) lawman seat of council, was near acrophobic by the determination and said determination was 'no imaginable nationalist oregon diligent interest' for a tribunal.
A spokesperson for the Doctors' Association UK, added: 'This is simply a communicative of a clinician being punished for raising superior concerns astir unsafe inaction connected the top menace to planetary wellness we person ever, oregon volition ever experience.
'The close to peaceful protestation is simply a basal quality right. It cannot and indispensable not beryllium taken away.
'Given the grounds connected clime alteration and its wellness impacts, we powerfully judge that peaceful protestation should not beryllium viewed arsenic condemnable nonrecreational misconduct – but arsenic commendable nationalist wellness advocacy.'
A GMC spokesperson said: ‘Dr Sarah Benn was referred to a proceeding astatine the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service not for protesting astir clime change, but for aggregate breaches of a tribunal bid which resulted successful a custodial sentence.
‘Like each citizens, doctors person the close to explicit their idiosyncratic opinions connected issues, including clime change.
'There is thing successful our guidance to forestall them from doing so, nor from exercising their close to lobby authorities and to campaign, including taking portion successful protests.
‘However, patients and the nationalist rightly person a precocious grade of spot successful doctors and that spot tin beryllium eroded if doctors repeatedly neglect to comply with the law.
‘Our fittingness to practise investigations see cases which are referred to america and wherever doctors person breached the law, not their motivations for doing so. It is not the relation of regulators to find UK instrumentality – that is simply a substance for parliament.’
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