Farmer Andrew Spence staging fuel protest on Saturday

Andrew Spence, who organised Fuel Lobby protesters at the Shell UK plant in Jarrow in both 2000 and 2005, plans to lead hundreds of vehicles up the A1(M) and into Newcastle on Saturday.

It is over two decades since the former haulage boss brought the city to a halt with a seven-mile convoy, and now, with diesel topping £1.50 a litre, the 54-year-old grandfather is taking a stand once again.

Andrew Spence 

Mr Spence, who has a farm at Leadgate, Consett, said: “A few farmers have got together and been talking about the price of fuel and it is killing us.

“I put it out there and the response has been unbelievable.

“There are people who are saying they have buy fuel, heat the house or buy food.

“I put the protest idea out on Facebook and by the end of the day I had 6,000 views. It has absolutely snowballed.

“If half the people turn out who said they will it will be bigger than the one we did in 2000 when we completely encircled Newcastle city centre.”

The plan is to meet at 11am on Dukesway on the Team Valley Trading Estate in Gateshead and travel north on the A1, before heading into Newcastle on the A184, over the Redheugh Bridge, through the city centre, past the BBC, on to the central motorway  over the Tyne Bridge and through Low Fell to the Angel of the North.

Mr Spence said the vehicles, including cars, lorries, coaches, tractors and taxis will be trundling along at 5mph, but will make way for emergency services.

Protests 20 years ago caused gridlock on the roads

Andrew Spence was part of the blockade at the oil terminal in Jarrow

Andrew Spence became a key figure in the Fuel Lobby movement 

Mr Spence became a national figure in the fuel protests of 2000, which saw long queues as petrol stations ran dry and rolling road blocks on motorways as farmers and hauliers around the country unified and mobilised as part of direct action over rising prices.

They were the first real challenge to Tony Blair’s premiership and the following year, during the General Election, Mr Spence contested his seat in the Sedgefield constituency as a UKIP candidate.

When Mr Blair stood down in 2007, Mr Spence was also an unsuccessful parliamentary candidate with the British National Party, but has since cut all ties with the organisation.

Mr Spence now has Boris Johnson’s Government in his sights and is calling for a cap on rising costs as it emerged inflation has risen to over four per cent.

Mr Spence said: “This protest is going to going to set a precedent for the rest of the country.

“The other guys are watching and if we pull this out of the bag on Saturday you are going to see Hell of a lot more and Hell of a lot bigger protests.

“The people who seems to get hit all of the time are the easy targets, the motorists, the people who use fuel.

“Don’t get me wrong, I am an environmentalist but until there is a viable option there we are stuck with what we have got."

Mr Spence is mobilising people this time by using Facebook 

Mr Spence said: "I must point out at no point will any emergency services be inhibited.

“We will be escorted by Northumbria Police and we are responsible people.

“That is why we are doing what we are doing. We do not want anyone to come to harm.

“But this is an act of desperation.”

Read more: Diners forced to run and hide in attack at Italian restaurant  

A spokesman for Northumbria Police said: "We are aware of a planned protest in Gateshead and Newcastle this weekend.

“The safety of everyone, including those participating in the protest, other members of the public and our officers will always be our utmost priority.
“The right to lawful protest is a key part of any democracy, which the police uphold.”

A Government spokesperson said fuel prices are increasing in countries across the world, not just in the UK

He added: "We’ve provided £4.2 billion of support to help people with the cost of living, including effectively cutting taxes for workers on Universal Credit, providing £500m of targeted support for the most vulnerable families and freezing fuel duty for the twelfth year in a row.”

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