Thousands of protesters who descended on central London with chants of ‘we want our country back’ for a Tommy Robinson rally.
The demonstrators, waving Union, English, Scottish and Welsh flags, have gathered at the Royal Courts of Justice ahead of a march to Trafalgar Square this afternoon.
Cries of ‘Rule Britannia’ have been seen before the event, which Robinson – whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon – has said will be the ‘biggest patriotic rally the UK has ever seen’.
The Metropolitan Police have flooded central London with 1,000 police officers to keep the peace this afternoon, with a large counter-demonstration by Stand Up To Racism set to take place, as well as a Trans Pride march all in the space of two miles.
The force says the vast majority of its officers on-duty today will be tasked with keeping the groups, some of whom have diametrically opposed views, apart from each other.
Police officers walk down Whitehall from Trafalgar Square ahead of today’s protests, with metal barriers in the road to stop the demonstrations mixing
Three police vans sit in front of metal barriers on Whitehall before the rallies take place today
A rally organised by Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, will take place in central London today. Pictured: Robinson during a march to Parliament Square in London on June 1
Tommy Robinson tweeted that today’s demonstration would be ‘beautiful’ alongside an image of Trafalgar Square
There will also be a Trans Pride march at Wellington Arch less than two miles away on Saturday. Pictured: A person holding up a sign reading ‘Believe Trans Kids’ during a rally in Brighton on July 20
The ‘Uniting The Kingdom’ event, which has been billed as a ‘patriotic rally’ will see participants gather on The Strand, before marching to Trafalgar Square.
When they reach the historic venue there will be speeches from the likes of Robinson and other members of the far-right.
At the same time counter-demonstrators are expected to gather for a rally organised by Stand Up To Racism and other groups, including former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn‘s Peace & Justice Project, will take place.
That rally will see protesters gather at Russell Square before marching down Embankment to finish at Whitehall, less than 400 metres from the the Tommy Robinson event.
Meanwhile, there will also be a march in support of Trans Pride, with LGBTQ+ activists travelling from Langham Place to Wellington Arch.
This morning Robinson tweeted an image of Trafalgar Square before the rally, which is set to last until 5.30pm, accompanied by the words ‘Today is the day, it’s going to be beautiful’, adding that it would be the ‘biggest patriotic rally the UK has ever seen’.
On Friday he reposted a video which talked about his protest being about a ‘strength in numbers’ showing the establishment that ‘we can organise and do not like the way the country is being run’.
The counter protest run by Stand Up To Racism with the support of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and 11 other trade unions, Stop the War Coalition, Peace & Justice Project and Unite Against Fascism will set off at 1.30pm.
Stand Up To Racism organisers said: ‘We are stressing the need to come together and build once again the kind of broad united movement that can drive back the threat as we have done before.’
Samuel Sweek, of the Peace & Justice Project, said: ‘The rise of the far-right and fascist politics in Britain and across Europe is a cause of great concern for us all.
Police have put barriers around landmarks on Whitehall ahead of today’s demonstrations. Pictured: metal barriers and traffic cones place around The Women of World War II memorial on Whitehall
Metal barriers have also been placed around The Cenotaph in Whitehall ahead of the rallies
There is expected to be a large counter-demonstration organised by Stand Up To Racism and trade unions in central London at the same time. Pictured: A counter-demonstrator at a previous protest in London on June 1
Organisers of the counter-protest have billed it as a ‘Unite Against Tommy Robinson’ march. Pictured: A man handing out leaflets in Tolpuddle, Dorset, calling on people to join today’s march in London
‘The political establishment has allowed breathing space for hate and division in our communities, we must stand with those targeted by the likes of Tommy Robinson and his thugs.
‘We refuse to cede any ground to bigotry, racism, Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia or any other form of hate they attempt to bring to our streets.
‘When the politicians fail, it is the people who must fight back.
‘That is why we will be marching on Saturday.’
Police have put a host of restrictions in place in a bid to keep attendees of these two events apart from each other, while roads across central London have been closed.
No conditions have been imposed on the Trans Pride protest.
The Met have warned that people who breach these conditions could be arrested or face police action.
Chief Superintendent Colin Wingrove said: ‘This weekend sees a number of groups with opposing views assembling in central London.
The Tommy Robinson rally will set off from The Strand before moving into Trafalgar Square where there will be speeches
The counter-protest will see attendees gather in Russel Square before marching down Kingsway to Victoria, and then along Embankment before massing in Whitehall, less than 400 metres from the Tommy Robinson rally
The Met Police have closed roads in central London to accommodate the protests, with the areas shaded in purple, blue and green set to be particularly affected today
‘In response we are deploying a significant number of officers as part of a carefully planned operation.
‘Our first priority is to keep the peace to ensure that those exercising their right to lawful protest can do so safely.
‘We have proactively used our powers under the Public Order Act to manage the timings and routes of marches and assemblies, ensuring that the groups are kept apart.
‘Officers will intervene decisively to deal with any breaches of those conditions, prevent crime, and to respond to any other incidents.
‘Everyone has a right to feel safe and be safe in London. Those who abuse the right to protest in an effort to unlawfully intimidate others or to use hate speech can expect to face police action.
‘The police presence will be very visible and I would urge anyone out and about in London, whether participating in these events or not, to speak to an officer if they feel unsafe or wish to report an incident.’