Good Morning Britain viewers have branded Chris Packham an 'absolute joke' after he defended the Just Stop Oil protests live on the show.
The 63 year old spoke to presenters Richard Madeley, 68, and Susanna Reid, 54, after 16 climate activists decided to appeal their sentences.
The protestors have received sentences between 15 months and five years after taking part in the M25 blockade, while others threw paint at Van Gogh's paintings in the National Gallery in 2022.
Susanna explained that they were all legitimately handed their sentences within the guidelines and asked what Chris' objection was, to which Chris replied: 'My objection is we have an overcrowded prison system.
'Here we have peaceful climate protestors being put in jail for unduly long sentences, some have received sentences longer than violent offences, or sex offences.
'We feel they are being targeted and victimised when they have a legitimate right to non-violently, peacefully protest in this country to draw attention to the fact that we are all exposed to climate breakdown and it's the greatest danger of our age.
Good Morning Britain fans brand Chris Packham an 'absolute joke' as he defends Just Stop Oil protests live on show - raging 'he has made average people hate him!'
The 63-year-old appeared on the ITV show to talk about activists appealing their prison sentences
'Frankly they are clambering to get media attention to communicate this to an increasingly concerned public.'
Richard later pointed out in the segment: 'If somebody had died as a direct result of being held up on a motorway because of the protects...
'If somebody had died, your response to their family would be "well traffic jams happen".
'"Could have been a traffic jam cased by an accident, caused for any other reason, sorry about that, that's life". It's an extraordinary piece of logic.'
Chris replied: 'Not really Richard, my sympathies would be unbounded when it comes to anyone affected by a tragedy like that, and you well know it.
'Let's look at the tragedy that happened over seas in California, look at the magnitude of the calamity that's facing humanity.
'We're not talking about individuals in ambulances as an artifact of a protest, we're talking about billions of people whose lives who are currently at risk because of the gravity of this problem.
'If we are not being led properly by the media, if we cannot counter the misinformation on social media, we have a really significant problem.
'What we do need to do is have a peaceful right to bring this to public attention so the public understand the predicament that they are in.'
Those watching at home took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their thoughts.
One said on the platform: '#GMB Chris Packham has made average people hate him and his Just Stop Oil mates.....'
Another added: 'Got no sympathy for them when it stops the emergency services #gmb.'
A third chimed in: 'Used to like Packham back in the day, now an absolute joke #gmb.'
'He couldn’t care less about the mass inconvenience caused #GMB,' a fourth pointed out.
A fifth asked: 'What about those that missed weddings, funerals, important hospital appointments? Don’t they matter?'
Meanwhile others tried to see the other point of view.
Many took to X to share their thoughts on the segment
One said: 'History will be on the side of @chrispackham who is highlighting the dangerous future our planet is hurtling towards.'
Another added: 'I understand the concern about the targets for Just Stop Oil protests, but, even so, this is very unbalanced presenting from GMB.
'Would other issues be presented in this way? Also Laura Tobin saying a few words now and then is not equivalent to a protest. #GMB.'
A third chimed in: '5 years is outrageous, you don’t have to agree with them to see that 5 years for a non violent crime is disgusting and clearly used to set an example.
'We have rapists and domestic abusers doing less time than someone taking part in a non-violent protest #GoodMorningBritain #GMB.'
'Chris, sentences are ridiculous ,murderers and drug dealers who ruin multiple peoples lives forever get less. Most people experienced a slight inconvenience. Poor journalism #ChrisPackham,' a fourth wrote.
A fifth tweeted: 'I actually agree with #gmb this morning over protesters, but what on earth happened to impartiality?'
Good Morning Britain airs from 10am weekdays on ITV and is available to stream on ITVX.
