It’s almost become a tradition for something to go wrong with the Norwegian capital’s annual gift of a Christmas tree for London. Some of the trees shipped from Oslo to London have been damaged during transport, while this year’s tree-chopping ceremony was delayed by a demonstration against the Norwegian and British oil industries.
When crews arrived to help the mayors of Oslo and London chop down the tree Oslo will once again send to London, they found an anti-oil demonstrator perched on one of its branches. PHOTO: Sturlason/Oslo kommune
City officials had once again gathered the mayors of both cities along with local school children, work crews, various other guests and the press. Oslo Mayor Anne Lindboe served as hostess, but when everyone arrived at the site of the chosen tree in the city’s Nordmarka forest, there was something unusual already hanging on it.
“I must admit I was quite surprised when I saw some unwanted decorations on the tree,” Lindboe told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK). A demonstrator from the environmental activists’ organization Extinction Rebellion had climbed up the tree and perched on a branch, to protest Norway’s and the UK’s oil offshore oil operations in their respective sections of the North Sea.
Knut Johansson, leader of the city’s environmental unit, was ready to oversee the chopping-down process, but had to wait for police to remove the man from the tree. “This is most unfortunate,” Johansson said. “We can’t continue with a man up in the tree.”
The demonstrator, who was later escorted away from the site by police, was unhappy that British authorities and Norway’s state oil company Equinor still want to build out the UK’s largest undeveloped oil and gas field called Rosebank. It lies in the British sector of the North Sea around 130 kilometers northwest of Shetland, and was cleared for development in 2023. A court in Scotland, however, declared the plans invalid earlier this year and suspended drilling at the site. Equinor still hopes for a first phase start-up in 2026-2027.
Oslo Mayor Anne Lindboe and her British counterpart Paul Dimoldenberg, Lord Mayor of Westminister, could finally get down to business after the anti-oil demonstration in the forest Friday morning. PHOTO: Sturlason/Oslo kommune
The tree-chopping ceremony, meanwhile, was eventually able to resume, with Lindboe and the Lord Mayor of Westminster Paul Dimoldenberg making the first cut, accompanied by music from the local Maridalen and Manglerud schools. A new tree was planted after the one chosen to be set up at Trafalgar Square was chopped down.
Now Lindboe and her colleagues can only hope that the tree will survive its voyage across the North Sea without losing branches and becoming scraggly as in previous years. The Oslo tree, due to be in place and lit in London on December 11, has earlier been described as a thin cucumber, and has attracted ridicule for years.
The 20-meter-high tree that was chosen by professionals and the public as the gift for London this year was at least looking green and lush, even after being scaled and occupied by the demonstrator. It’s believed to be around 65-70 years old and seemed to be in good shape when loaded onto the trailer-truck that will take it to its ship bound for England.
The tree bound for London was looking good when it left Oslo on Friday, with frost in the forest adding to the ambiance. PHOTO: Bymiljøetaten/Oslo komunne
Oslo officials remain keen to carry on the tradition of sending a Christmas tree to London, as a sign of appreciation for British support during World War II when Norway was under Nazi German occupation. The tradition dates back to 1947.
“We’re glad to share (a tree) with London,” Lindboe said. “In a world plagued by instability, with conflicts and crises in many countries, symbols of friendship and hope are especially important.”
NewsinEnglish.no/Nina Berglund
