Two women in their 80s have been charged with criminal damage after the glass around the Magna Carta at the British Library was attacked.

Reverend Sue Parfitt, 82, from Bristol, and Judith Bruce, 85, from Swansea, were arrested on Friday morning and have been charged with criminal damage, the Metropolitan Police said.

Two protesters targeted the protective enclosure around the historic document with a hammer and chisel on Friday morning.

Just Stop Oil said the pair then held up a sign reading “The Government is breaking the law” before gluing themselves to the display.

A statement from the British Library said its security team “intervened to prevent further damage to the case, which was minimal” and “the Magna Carta itself remains undamaged”.

The gallery that houses the display is closed until further notice, it added.

The pair were released on bail and are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on June 20.