Britain10 September, 20263 min read
Shabana Mahmood Orders Police To Use All Powers Against Balaclava Anti-Migrant Protests In Dover And Portsmouth
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Home Secretary Mahmood orders police to use all powers, including bans on face coverings. Three people were arrested in Portsmouth anti-migrant protests, including a 76-year-old man.
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Mahmood presses police
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood told police chiefs they must use “all powers necessary” to deal with far-right groups seeking to intimidate communities after anti-migrant protests in Dover and Portsmouth, with the Home Office describing the scenes as “unacceptable disorder.” The BBC said Mahmood’s meeting on Thursday followed masked activists bringing Dover to a standstill on Saturday and a protest in Portsmouth on Sunday where about 200 people tried to block migrants being driven away for processing.
In the same meeting, the Home Office said the protests were different because people were “dressed in black wearing balaclavas,” creating “a fear factor and obvious malign intent being communicated to our residents.” The BBC reported that police chiefs were actively considering using recently-granted powers to completely ban face coverings in specific areas, and that Saturday’s protest was followed 24 hours later by another in which men blocked the only road out of Langstone Harbour near Portsmouth after the RNLI had brought ashore 120 migrants.
Patriot Platform and arrests
The Guardian reported that Mahmood urged police to curb far-right, anti-migrant groups after a weekend of chaos, telling officers to make “full use” of their powers, including bans on face coverings, and to pursue “strong deterrence” and improved intelligence. The Guardian linked the tactics to groups such as Patriot Platform, led by the convicted kidnapper Daniel Thomas, and said Mahmood told officers: “These scenes have caused disruption for people and, given that people are dressed in black wearing balaclavas, there is a fear factor and obvious malign intent being communicated to our residents.”
Separately, the BBC said Hampshire Police would use new powers under the Crime and Policing Act to prevent protesters wearing face coverings that conceal their identity, and that the new powers came into effect at 10:00 BST. The BBC reported that three people were arrested during rival protests in Portsmouth, including a 76-year-old man suspected of concealing his identity after a ban on face coverings was introduced, a 33-year-old man arrested on suspicion of obstructing a highway and criminal damage, and a 16-year-old boy arrested on suspicion of violent disorder linked to a similar protest at Eastney Marina on Sunday.
What police can do next
The BBC said major changes to protest law in the last three years mean officers can intervene more quickly to end demonstrations that block critical national infrastructure, such as roads to ports, and can designate an entire area a face mask-free zone for the duration of a protest. The BBC also reported that police chiefs were initiating an “enhanced and co-ordinated” approach to gathering as much intelligence as possible in the days ahead, with Deputy Chief Constable Andy Mariner saying forces were “continually assessing and preparing for protests and any potential impact on public safety.”
In Portsmouth, the BBC said Hampshire Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones was pleased that protests took place “without major issue,” adding that officers did not see repeated scenes of Sunday night assaults on police officers and criminal damage to police vehicles and people’s property. The BBC further stated that Hampshire Police said the powers were aimed at preventing violence, intimidation and disorder following protests in the city over the past week, and that RNLI volunteers involved in the operation to bring the migrants to shore were targeted on social media.