Five Greenpeace activists have been arrested after blockading the entrance to a branch of Barclays Bank with a pop-up exhibition about the climate emergency.

The activists were arrested outside Manchester's Market Street branch during a blockade, which was part of a nationwide climate protest against the bank’s alleged multi-billion dollar support for fossil fuels.

A spokesperson for Greenpeace said the blockade shut down almost 100 branches across the UK, including branches in Preston, Blackpool and Lytham St Annes.

The pop-up exhibition blocking Manchester’s Market Street branch was removed by police earlier on Monday, but exhibitions remain in place in London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast.

The exhibitions displayed photographs of some of the worst climate emergency disasters in the four years since the Paris climate agreement was signed.

The spokesperson said: "Greenpeace are demanding that Barclays, the biggest funder of fossil fuels among European banks, stop propping up oil, gas and coal companies and channel funding into renewable energy."

In the early hours of Monday morning, Greenpeace activists prevented staff from entering as they disabled the doors of branches in every region of the UK, including seven across the North West.

At each of the branches targeted, images of Barclays customers bearing slogans such as ‘Stop Funding Fossil Fuels’ were plastered on branch windows.

The protest comes days after February was declared the wettest since records began, bringing flooding to regions across the UK.

The spokesperson continued: "Bank funding remains vital to fossil fuel companies.

"Barclays is the biggest funder of fossil fuels amongst banks in Europe, backing polluters to the tune of $85 billion between 2016 and 2018.

"This included huge sums globally for some of the dirtiest fuels such as coal and tar sands and fracking companies.

"The Bank has been under increasing pressure from investors to stop offering loans to fossil fuel companies, with Barclays expected to make a statement on the issue in the coming month."

Morten Thaysen, climate finance campaigner at Greenpeace UK said: "Barclays must stop funding the climate emergency, that’s why we’ve taken action today.

"From floods to bushfires and record heat in Antarctica, the impacts of this crisis are staring us in the face.

"Yet Barclays keeps pumping billions into fossil fuel companies at exactly the time we need to stop backing these polluting businesses.

"Banks are just as responsible for the climate emergency as the fossil fuel companies they fund, yet they’ve escaped scrutiny for years.

"We’ve shut down branches across the country to shine a spotlight on Barclays’ role in bankrolling this emergency.

"It’s time Barclays pulled the plug and backed away from funding fossil fuels for good."

A spokesperson for Barclays said: "Our priority is to ensure the health and safety of our colleagues and customers, and we are working hard to re-open affected branches as soon as we possibly can, although we are not be able to give an exact timescale.

"We recognise that climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing the world today, and are determined to do all we can to support the transition to a low carbon economy, while also ensuring that global energy needs continue to be met.

"Greenpeace has a view on these issues to which they are completely entitled, but we would ask that – in expressing that view – they stop short of behaviour which targets our customers, and our colleagues, going about their lives in communities around the country."