The disorder also took place against the backdrop of continuing uncertainty over Suella Braverman’s future as Home Secretary after she claimed last week that police had shown partiality in how rigorously they tackle different types of protest.
On Saturday, she faced accusations from Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor, that the “scenes of disorder” involving far-Right protesters at the Cenotaph were a “direct result” of her words.
In his most outspoken attack on the Home Secretary to date, Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, accused her of showing a “total lack of respect” to British values because of her criticism of the police and labelling of demonstrators as “hate marchers”.
Writing for the Telegraph, Sir Keir said: “Few people in public life have done more recently to whip up division, set the British people against one another and sow the seeds of hatred and distrust than Suella Braverman.”
However, the claim that Mrs Braverman’s words had led to the far-Right violence was dismissed by a Tory MP supportive of the Home Secretary as “ludicrous”.
The MP instead said that Mrs Braverman had been “proved right” in pressing for the protests to be called off. “This was grimly predictable and it’s playing itself out on our sacred weekend,” they said.
In addition to the criticism of their overall decision not to ban the march, the police were also left facing questions about operational decisions made on the day.
While pro-Palestinian demonstrators were subject to a police exclusion zone covering the Cenotaph and Whitehall, counter-protesters were permitted to gather in the area.
In a briefing before the event, Laurence Taylor, the Met deputy assistant commissioner, said the counter-protest would be allowed “because the sole purpose and their intention is to protect the sanctity of the Cenotaph and Remembrance so I don’t anticipate there will be any disorder from that group”.
David Jones, a former Cabinet minister, said: “I honestly think that the whole of Whitehall should have been off limits for demonstrators, this weekend certainly.
“We’re talking about the two solemnest days in the national calendar.”
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/11/11/pro-palestine-rally-protest-armistice-day-london-police/
