Central London descended into chaotic scenes on Saturday after police squared off with demonstrators in a large-scale protest against the latest coronavirus restrictions.
Thousands of Britons took to the streets of London on Saturday in response to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government edging closer to another lockdown and the possibility of introducing Covid passports domestically in England.
The demonstration began in Parliament Square at noon. Tensions between the protesters and the police were evident from the outset of the march, with minor scuffles taking place outside Westminster.
#londonprotest #EnoughIsEnough and the People of all ages have come out in their droves. #Londoners pic.twitter.com/NjXzKOLje2
— Gillian McKeith (@GillianMcKeith) December 18, 2021
After marching through Central London, the protest arrived at Number 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the British Prime Minister. Protesters were seen waving Gadsden flags, and some attempted to break through the police barricades set up around N0. 10.
Footage shared on social media purports to show protesters pelting police officers with bottles and other makeshift projectiles. During the pandemonium, officers were filmed pushing a one-legged man to the ground.
🚨 | NEW: Police push over one legged man at Anti-lockdown protest
Via @SubjectAccesss pic.twitter.com/pVlGhx43bF
— Politics For All (@PoliticsForAlI) December 18, 2021
Responding to the footage, the Metropolitan Police wrote on social media: “We’re aware of this video showing a man being pushed backwards by an officer on Whitehall.
“Officers were dispersing demonstrators following an outbreak of disorder in which they [were] subjected to abuse [and] physical violence. A complaint has been received [and] will be properly considered.”
Protesters have assembled outside Downing Street chanting that the PM should be arrested. Some started throwing bottles and cans at police officers protecting the gate, with one flare thrown in their direction going over the gate and inside Downing Street #londonprotest pic.twitter.com/Es20NksUZn
— Shayan Sardarizadeh (@Shayan86) December 18, 2021
During the protest, London’s leftist mayor, Sadiq Khan declared a ‘major incident’ in the British capital in response to the rising number of cases of the Omicron variant of the Wuhan virus.
While no new restrictions were enacted in the city as a result of the declaration, the move enables the local government to commandeer emergency services, such as the police or fire brigade.
“This is a statement of how serious things are, but also it means rather than different public authorities working separately we will be working together through both the London Resilience Forum and also through the strategic co-ordinating group,” Khan said.
The announcement from Khan came just hours after leaked proposals from Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government laid out plans for a two-week “circuit breaker” lockdown following Christmas, in which pubs and restaurants would be prevented from hosting indoor service and limits would be placed on indoor gathering of people from different households.
Follow Kurt Zindulka on Twitter here @KurtZindulka
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