Joanna Warrington at activist group Fossil Free London welcomed the suspension of the sponsorship deal, calling it a “major win for the movement to boycott Barclays”.
Ms Warrington said activists would now put pressure on Wimbledon to end their sponsorship deal with the bank ahead of the Championships starting in two weeks.
It marks the latest assault on cultural institutions after investment giant Baillie Gifford was forced to cancel its sponsorship deals with all UK literary festivals in the wake of protests over its alleged links to Israel and fossil fuel companies.
The Hay Festival, Henley and Cheltenham literary festivals are among the events to have cut ties with Baillie Gifford, which has been a long-standing supporter of the arts.
The head of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society this week refused to follow suit, as she said her organisation was “enormously grateful” for the investment firm’s support.
In an impassioned defence of Britain’s armed forces, Mr Shapps said the argument that it was unethical to invest in defence was “simply wrong”, adding that it would be “immoral” for investors to turn their backs on the sector.
He added: “A strong UK defence industry is the bedrock of our national security, protecting the supply of equipment that our service personnel use to protect us, the weapons we need to deter our enemies, and the ability to support our allies’ armed forces.
“The vast majority of people in this country understand why defence firms are so vital, and why banks including Barclays should be wholeheartedly backed. They should not be subject to ill-informed intimidation and violence.”
