Major police presence planned with thousands to gather in protest against far-right in London
Police have imposed special conditions on demonstrations planned for this Saturday in central London as large crowds are expected to gather for a mass protest against the far right.
Scotland Yard has confirmed that a significant police presence will be deployed across Westminster in anticipation of the convergence of two major marches.
The parade, organized by Together Alliance, will feature speeches and musical performances. Although he has the support of the likes of comedian Sir Lenny Henry and singer Paloma Faith, neither are expected to attend.
This walk will start from Park Lane at 1pm and finish in Whitehall. A separate music event is planned simultaneously in Trafalgar Square, with artists including former Little Mix member Leigh-Anne Pinnock.
A separate march, organized by the Palestine Coalition, will form at the southern end of Exhibition Road from midday, heading towards Hyde Park Corner, where demonstrators will turn onto Piccadilly and join Alliance Together’s route before groups prepare for a rally in Whitehall.
Officers imposed public order conditions banning the joint rally from continuing after 5pm.
Those gathered on the Whitehall stage will be shown a video message from London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan, and Green Party leader Zack Polanski is expected to make a speech.
Mr. Polanski is expected to say: “Our plan is simple… never back down in the face of hate when they attack immigrants, when they spew hatred against our trans brothers and sisters, when they blame Muslims for our country’s problems.”
Assistant Commissioner Jon Savell, who is in charge of this weekend’s policing operation, said: “This will be a busy weekend for our officers, but we have detailed plans to ensure any groups protesting this weekend can do so legally and without causing serious disruption to other Londoners, businesses or visitors.”
Mr. Savell said he was aware that some concerns had been expressed about the proximity of the Palestine Coalition’s base to a synagogue about a mile away.
“We know that in the past this has led some London Jews to avoid going to synagogues on days of protests in central London due to concerns about being trapped among protesters,” he said.
“This is extremely regrettable and we have taken steps this weekend which we hope will provide reassurance to anyone with similar concerns.
“Current conditions require attendees to gather only south of the Prince Consort Gardens intersection, which is 800 meters away from the synagogue. We will also have officers stationed in the vicinity to ensure that anyone arriving is directed to the appropriate location.”
He added: “I am aware that less than a week has passed since the horrific arson attack in Golders Green, which will further heighten already heightened fears in the Jewish community.
“We take these fears seriously and have considered them carefully in our planning, balancing them against the lawful rights of others to protest, as we must.”
The Metropolitan Police said that alongside the mass demonstration, a series of protests against the Iranian regime, both static meetings and marches, will take place in the Westminster area on both Saturday and Sunday.
In September, more than 100,000 people attended a Unite The Kingdom rally in central London, while around 5,000 people attended an anti-racism counter-demonstration.
The main rally was organized by right-wing activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, and resulted in several incidents of violent disorder that left more than 20 police officers injured.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer condemned it at the time, saying it made people “more afraid than before”.
