REVEALED: Mother of Insulate Britain ringleader is a Labour councillor who has been arrested FOUR times in a WEEK over M25 chaos

• Theresa Norton, 62, is a Labour councillor at Scarborough and Whitby Council 
• She has been arrested four times in a week over Insulate Britain’s M25 mayhem 
• Her 1870 terrace home has single glazed windows and Band D energy efficiency
• And MailOnline can reveal she is the mother of ringleader Liam Norton, who furiously stormed off the Good Morning Britain set when challenged this week 

Insulate Britain ringleader Liam Norton’s mother is a Labour councillor and climate activist who has been arrested four times in a week over the recent M25 chaos.  

Irate eco-warrior Norton stormed off Good Morning Britain earlier this week after clashing with hosts Richard Madeley and Suzanne Reid in a fiery debate.

But he has been joined by his 62-year-old mother, Theresa Norton, for the past two weeks of mayhem on the M25, MailOnline can today reveal.

Ms Norton, a Labour councillor in Scarborough, north Yorkshire, told neighbours she was going on a two-week holiday before heading south to bring the country’s busiest motorway to a standstill.

Since joining protesters, it is understood Ms Norton has been arrested on four separate occasions between Monday, September 13 and Monday, September 20.

Ms Norton, who lives in a flat in a draughty Edwardian seafront terrace, is currently on unconditional bail awaiting trial accused of bringing part of the North Yorkshire resort to a standstill on a busy bank holiday weekend in May. 

Neighbours claimed the 1870’s building she lives in is protected for conservation reasons and all windows are single glazed.

Most of the properties in her street, Esplanade Gardens, have an Energy Performance Certificate rating in Band D, an average rating which ‘leaves room for improvement’ according to experts.

Theresa Norton, 62, is a Labour councillor in Scarborough, north Yorkshire, who told neighbours she was going on a two-week holiday before heading south to bring the M25 to a standstill

Neighbours claimed the draughty Edwardian seafront terrace building she lives in (pictured) is protected for conservation reasons and all windows are single glazed with Band D energy efficiency ratings

She joined her son, Insulate Britain ringleader Liam Norton (pictured being arrested), for the eco-mob’s protests that caused traffic chaos for tens of thousands of Brits

Ms Norton was photographed earlier in the week speaking through a microphone in a rowdy protest outside the Home Office while holding a cardboard sign with the message: ‘Don’t procrastinate, insulate now.’ 

Earlier this month she was part of an Extinction Rebellion group cleared by a court over a protest at an HS2 site in Hertfordshire last October. 

Ms Norton’s antics this year have led to her being condemned in Parliament, however she maintains her innocence over her actions in Scarborough, stating her right to peacefully protest. 

Ms Norton’s flat is in a grand terrace which was built in 1870 an is in a conservation area that only allows single glazed sash windows. 

Insulate Britain ringleader Liam Norton stormed off Good Morning Britain mid-debate after a fiery clash with presenters Susanna Reid and Richard Madeley

The electrician, whose eco-mob are demanding the Government pay to insulate social housing, was irked after he was called out on claims his own home is not properly insulated

A neighbour told MailOnline: ‘We’re in a conservation area here so we aren’t allowed to fit double glazed windows, they have to be the traditional single glazed sash windows.

‘That’s understandable because you have to preserve the look of a place like this but unfortunately it means the flats are inclined to get chilly in winter so you have to crank the heating up. 

‘I’m sure some people are able to insulate them more effectively than others but there’s little you can do about the windows.’ 

Insulate Britain chiefs have suggested protests could continue despite the Government getting an injunction against the group.  

Grant Shapps revealed a judge granted the legal remedy last night following a week of chaos on major highways.

The Transport Secretary said the anarchists will face contempt of court and potentially be locked up if they continue their antics.

Insulate Britain spokeswoman Zoe Cohen was asked on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme if the injunction will stop the protests from taking place. 

She replied: ‘The people taking part in these actions understand that the risks they are taking are because that we have tried everything else to make the Government protect us from the predicted impacts of climate chaos.

‘That involves the loss of all that we cherish, our society, our way of life and law and order.

‘We’re calling for the installation and whole house retrofitting of social housing by 2025 and all homes by 2030, because this is the most effective way to reduce emissions, save lives from fuel poverty.’

Assistant Chief Constable Chris Noble, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for policing protests, told the programme: ‘Police aren’t anti-protest but we are pro-responsibility.

‘This is not a benign supermarket car park that this is taking place on.

‘Probably the people most likely to come to harm at the moment is probably initially police officers who are having to run across motorways to try and remove protesters as well as ironically keep them safe from themselves.’

Ms Norton told neighbours she was going on a two week holiday, but was photographed spending it at the heart of eco-mob Insulate Britain’s protests. 

Another neighbour said: ‘It’s up to her how she spends her time but you have to wonder whether those protests are going to capture people’s hearts and minds or just annoy them.’  

In May, Ms Norton caused significant disruption in Scarborough, according to prosecutors. 

She was charged with wilfully obstructing a highway with an non-motor vehicle, an offence which was alleged to have taken place on Saturday May 1. 

She faces trial on November 5th and if convicted faces a fine of up to £1,000. 

At a previous hearing Amber Spencer, prosecuting, told the court that the incident happened at around 11am. 

She said: ‘Officers state that the defendant walked into St Nicholas Street in Scarborough and sat herself down in the middle of the road surface in front of some traffic lights in order to protest climate change. 

‘The defendant remained there, obstructing the highway and intentionally preventing vehicles from driving past.’ 

It was the first bank holiday weekend after the lifting of some of the coronavirus restrictions and the protest led to a ‘large number of vehicles’ backing up through the town centre, the court was told. 

Tabitha Buck, acting for Ms Norton, said that she was exercising her right to protest under the Human Rights Act and challenged the prosecution’s version of events. 

She said: ‘She states that the traffic was not obstructed and that the traffic was flowing, although at a steadier pace, around her. 

‘She also submits in her defence that she was simply exercising her Article 11 right to peaceful assembly and protest and that is why she was there.’ 

Scarborough MP Robert Goodwill brought the incident up in the Commons. He told MPs: ‘During the spring bank holiday in May, a local labour Councillor, Theresa Norton, sat in the middle of the street, in the middle of Scarborough, on the first weekend when many of our hard pressed tourist businesses were keen to make up some of the money they’d lost during the pandemic, sat in the middle of the street and caused a massive traffic jam, supposedly demonstrating in the cause of Extinction Rebellion. 

‘That is sort of behaviour that should not be allowed to take place because it disrupts people’s lives and I believe actually antagonises people against those issues.’

Last year she took part in an Extinction rebellion protest in Hertfordshire. 

The protest took place on Friday, October 9 at a site near Maple Cross where more than 20 activists spent almost 10 hours blocking the entrance of the site, as part of a co-ordinated protest across HS2 sites. 

The non-violent protest included erecting bamboo structures to block entrance to the site. The case was discontinued at St Albans magistrates court earlier this month. 

After the decision, Ms Norton said: ‘Although we are pleased the case was dismissed we are angry that the prosecution decided to continue, especially as the September trial for the final group had been cancelled, as had others previously. Disorganised and in disarray, HS2 are a disgrace.’

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