‘Authoritarian’: Protesters in Westminster slam police bill as risk to democracy

Opposing plans for a new policing bill is “crucial to protect our democracy”, a London assembly member has said.

Protestors gathered in central London at the Stop the Police Bill demo to object to plans for the Policing, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, set to be voted on in the Lords next week.

Zack Polanski, Green Party London AM, said: “The next few days are absolutely crucial to protect our democracy.

“A lot of people don’t support this government but this is not about issues I believe in, or not.

“It’s about people’s right to protest.”

In a tweet, the AM blasted the bill as “authoritarian legislation which bans protest”.

The Home Office has said the bill’s focus is on cutting crime, building safer communities, and restoring confidence in the criminal justice system, including a crackdown on violent crime.

It will “strengthen police powers” to stop “non-violent protests” and “unauthorised encampments” with “a significant disruptive effect on the public or on access to parliament”.

First brought to the House of Commons in March 2021, the bill is currently at the report stage in the Lords, meaning it is close to being agreed on as law.

But the Green Party have criticised the government for adding 18 pages of amendments to the draft bill, which they say have not been scrutinised effectively.

Campaigners are calling on Labour members of the House of Lords to vote against the amendments on a cross-party basis, alongside the Liberal Democrats and the Greens.

Zack said the bill, which has been criticised as effectively criminalising protest, is a response to environmental action by groups including Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain, which have seen demonstrators block roads and motorways, sparking fury from drivers.

If agreed, the new law allows the home secretary to rule on whether protests cause ‘serious disruption’, and to impose strict conditions on the noise, length and size of demonstrations.

While organisers risk detention and criminal charges, with up to year long prison sentences, and anyone attending could face significant fines.

Speaking to LondonWorld, Zack said the bill also proposed “more powers of stop and search - when we should be reducing a practice which discriminates against people of colour”.

He added: “We should be looking to increase policing by consent.

“[The bill] criminalises lock ons which were used by the suffragettes.

“I’m also particularly worried about the Gypsy and Roma community. There are several provisions in the police bill to remove people’s vehicles without asking questions.

“In the travelling community your vehicle is literally your home.”

Home secretary Priti Patel previously said: “On becoming home secretary, I vowed to back the police to cut crime and make our streets safer.

“This bill delivers on that promise – equipping the police with the tools they need to stop violent criminals in their tracks, putting the thugs who assault officers behind bars for longer and strengthening the support officers and their families receive.

“The government has already recruited over 6,600 of the additional 20,000 police officers and every single one of them has my full support.

“This bill enshrines my commitment to those brave officers who put themselves in danger to keep the rest of us safe into law.”