PROTESTERS from across Europe flocked to Luxembourg today to demand that the European Investment Bank (EIB) immediately ends its support for fossil-fuel projects around the world.

The action, the first targeting the European Union’s financial arm over climate change, took place a week before the 28 EU finance ministers are due to meet to review the bank’s energy lending policies.

Dozens of people representing communities in at least 12 countries blocked the bank’s entrance, singing and chanting. One of the EIB vice-presidents came out to listen to the testimonies of representatives.

One protester, who gave her name only as Camille, said that people across Europe were rising up to demand an end to public money being used to support expansion of the fossil-fuel industry.

She said: “Communities across the world are already feeling the impacts of climate breakdown.

“We need to change course, faster, but money keeps flowing to new and existing fossil-fuel projects and the EIB loaned nearly €12 billion (£10bn) to fossil fuels between 2013 and 2017 while calling itself a ‘climate leader.’

“Young people across more than 165 countries are striking in numbers we have never seen before to demand bold action to keep fossil fuels in the ground to have a possible future and stop climate breakdown.”

The EIB, the world’s largest multilateral lender, is facing mounting pressure to update its policies as public awareness of the scale of the climate crisis continues to grow.

Campaigners say the EIB board of governors – made up of the finance ministers of the EU member states – has a duty to act in accordance with national and international climate targets.