Six people arrested as Tommy Robinson supporters and opponents face off

Six radical person been arrested pursuing a march successful enactment of Tommy Robinson and a abstracted counter-demonstration successful cardinal London.

The offences included an incidental wherever a flare was acceptable off, an apprehension adjacent Waterloo aft an serviceman was spat astatine and 3 arrests successful Whitehall aft “Stop the Isolation” protesters entered the “Stand Up To Racism” rally country successful breach of conditions, the Metropolitan Police said.

A further apprehension was made by the unit for a breach of Public Order Act conditions.

A protestation organised nether the sanction “Stop the Isolation” oregon “Unite the Kingdom”, successful enactment of Robinson, whose existent sanction is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, had earlier seen thousands of radical conscionable extracurricular Waterloo presumption earlier marching towards Westminster and assembling astatine the Parliament Square extremity of Whitehall.

Chants of “We privation our state back” and “We privation Tommy out” were sung arsenic the objection acceptable off, with protesters carrying flags bearing slogans including “Free Tommy Robinson” and “Stop the Boats”.

Some demonstrators were wearing “MEGA – Make England Great Again” hats and “I americium Tommy” stickers with galore radical livestreaming the lawsuit connected their phones.

A counter-protest organised by Stand Up To Racism acceptable disconnected from St James’s Street, southbound of Piccadilly Circus, connected a march to Whitehall via Piccadilly Circus and Haymarket earlier a rally astatine the Trafalgar Square extremity of Whitehall.

The counter-demonstration has been billed by organisers arsenic “marching unneurotic against racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism and to accidental that we won’t fto the acold close disagreement us”.

Pedestrian entree successful the mediate of Whitehall was restricted, and officers were being deployed to support the groups apart, the Metropolitan constabulary said.

Anyone successful the country not progressive successful the protests was encouraged to usage different routes to spell from Trafalgar Square to Parliament Square, oregon vice versa, the unit added.

Robinson was sentenced to 18 months successful situation successful October aft the Solicitor General took ineligible enactment against him for breaching a High Court injunction made successful 2021.

We indispensable bring that anti-racist tone onto the streets of London and cull the authorities of hate

Weyman Bennett, Stand Up To Racism co-convenor

He admitted 10 breaches of the order, which barred him from repeating libellous allegations against a Syrian refugee.

Organisers of the protestation successful enactment of Robinson posted connected X, formerly Twitter, saying: “We volition proceed to Downing Street.

“Stand against the isolation of Tommy Robinson.

“Deliver our connection to the establishment.”

Weyman Bennett, Stand Up To Racism co-convenor, said: “We saw the powerfulness of mobilising against the far-right successful effect to past summer’s racist riots.

“We indispensable bring that anti-racist tone onto the streets of London and cull the authorities of hate.”

Commander Louise Puddefoot, successful complaint of the policing operation, said the unit was “well prepared” for some protests and had been successful treatment with organisers.

She said: “We person officers deployed successful important numbers to supply reassurance to the wider assemblage and to springiness america the capableness to intervene swiftly and decisively if incidents of transgression oregon upset occur.

“Decisions connected our policing benignant astatine protests, including the types of azygous worn by officers and the protective instrumentality disposable to them, are taken connected a case-by-case basis. It allows america to beryllium acceptable to respond rapidly and decisively wherever we request to.”