Thousands of Tommy Robinson supporters have gathered in central London for a protest which the political activist will miss after he was remanded into custody by police. The Metropolitan police had put a condition on Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally that it could not begin its procession to Parliament Square before 1pm. However, it appears the crowds were so large that the demonstration spilled out from its meeting point around Victoria Station and the supporters were initially held by a line of police from marching down Victoria Street.
There were sporadic shouts of “oh Tommy, Tommy” from the mostly male, white and middle-aged crowd of demonstrators. Many carried union flags. One held a placard reading “Peter Lynch RIP patriot”, a reference to a riots prisoner who recently died in prison. Police were dressed in public order overalls and carrying long batons but none was carrying a helmet. The blue vans of the territorial support group, a specialist public order unit, were also present. By about 2pm, as a light drizzle fell, many people made their way out of the rally. Thousands remained to watch a screening of Robinson’s new documentary, Lawfare, which took the place of a stump speech by the figurehead. A counter-protest is taking place in the capital organised by Stand Up to Racism, which has called on its supporters to “take to the streets” in a “massive anti-fascist demonstration”.
Elsewhere in central London, the United Families and Friends Campaign held its annual remembrance procession for relatives who have died in police custody, which included a protest over the acquittal this week of the firearms officer Martyn Blake who shot dead Chris Kaba. Hundreds of people gathered in Trafalgar Square and marched to Downing Street. Activists held signs reading “No justice”, “No one forgotten, nothing forgiven” and “No to hatred, no to fascism”. Five family members – including a relative of Kaba – arrived at Downing Street dressed in black with a handwritten note addressed to Keir Starmer. They knocked on the door and handed it to a security guard. A speaker from the Justice for Chris Kaba campaign addressed the crowd as it marched to Downing Street. She spoke of “collective grief”, “devastation” and “disappointment”, adding: “We have each other. We are strong. We are powerful.” Robinson, 41, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is accused of being in contempt of court after the airing of a film at a protest in Trafalgar Square in July.
He attended Folkestone police station on Friday, where he was remanded before a hearing at Woolwich crown court on Monday concerning allegations that he breached a 2021 high court order barring him from repeating libellous allegations against a Syrian refugee who successfully sued him. Robinson was separately charged on Friday with failing to provide his mobile phone access code to police under schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, Kent police said. The Met and the British Transport police are being supported by officers from other forces across the country for the protests and the Met said there would be a “significant police presence” to ensure that the two groups were kept apart.