Graham Smith, the chief executive of the anti-monarchy campaign Republic, has called for the repeal of new laws giving police greater powers to detain protesters, following his arrest alongside other demonstrators at the coronation of King Charles. Smith dismissed suggestions that the arrests were necessary to limit the disruption to people enjoying the celebrations, calling them “disgraceful”. He claimed that the police had every intention of arresting them and used unfeasible straps as a “pretext” to justify their actions.
Smith believes that the Public Order Act, signed into law last week, tips the balance against protest by lowering the definition of “serious disruption”. He argued that the law means that protesters in the UK no longer have the right to protest, but only have the freedom to protest with the permission of senior police officers and politicians. Smith accused the Met of using the law to disrupt and diminish their protest, and claimed that the force was under pressure from politicians to take action against the protesters.
Labor frontbencher Andrew Gwynne said that the Act gave “disproportionate” powers to the police, but declined to commit the party to repealing it if it enters government. Instead, the shadow public health minister suggested that the next Labour government would “look very carefully at this legislation”. Gwynne defended the right to protest, but also implied that revellers supporting the coronation should have drowned out the dissent.
Ken Marsh, head of the Metropolitan Police Federation, defended the police’s actions, saying that they were acting “impartially” on the powers they had. Marsh claimed that protesting can take place in the UK, but that police have to balance and deal with the level of disruption caused by protesters.
Graham Smith. (Via Graham Smith./Twitter)
Caroline Russell, chair of the London Assembly’s Police and Crime Committee, raised concerns about the arrests, saying that women’s safety volunteers were among those detained after rape alarms were seized. Russell’s committee will question the Met over the “worrying” arrests, citing the “extraordinary” circumstances surrounding the arrests of volunteers handing out flip flops and rape alarms.
In total, the Met made 64 arrests during the coronation day, with four charges brought against the protesters. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has demanded “clarity” from the force’s leaders on the arrests, while Labour has so far refused to commit to repealing the Public Order Act. The controversy highlights ongoing concerns about the balance between police powers and the right to protest in the UK.
