Several arrests were made, but the protest and counter-protest were peaceful.
The protesters supporting Tommy Robinson marched between Victoria Station and Whitehall (Image: Getty)
A sea of protestors took to the streets of central London on Saturday 26 in solidarity with Tommy Robinson.
Placards reading “Two-tier Keir fuelled the riots” and “get Starmer out” flooded the skies as they headed from Victoria Station to Parliament Square.
A counter-demonstration ignited by Stand Up For Racism took place just a stone’s throw away in Trafalgar Square.
Five people were arrested during the day.
On the Tommy Robinson side, one individual was arrested for a breach of Public Order Act conditions in place and a breach of the peace, while the second person was arrested for a racially aggravated public order offence.
On the other side of the protest, one woman was arrested for common assault near the Stand Up To Racism stage. However, the Met Police said she had been “de-arrested” shortly after as she agreed to provide her details, but an investigation will follow.
A second attendee at the counter-protest was arrested after an officer was assaulted when a group from the Stand Up To Racism demonstration tried to push through a cordon at the end of the Mall.
Thousands of people attended the Tommy Robinson march (Image: Getty)
Following the end of the demonstrations, the Met Police shared that another arrest had been made during the day. The force said: “A racist remark was directed at an officer leading to an arrest for a racially aggravated public order offence. The protest affiliation of the suspect hasn’t been confirmed.”
Many of the thousands of attendees at the ‘Uniting the Kingdom’ rally could be heard chanting “free, free Robinson” and “we want Starmer out” loudly through the streets, while holding high thousands of England flag.
The inspiration behind the protest, however, missed his own planned march as Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, remains in police custody after being remanded on Friday.
John Walsgrove, 65, nicknamed ‘Honest John’, told the Express how he believes Sir Keir Starmer is to blame for the record-high migrant crossings – one of the issues the Robinson clan protested.
“Our Prime Minister at the moment, he’s against us. How can he give millions to Africa but has no money for the British people,” says John.
Some attendees held placards against Keir Starmer (Image: Getty)
He adds: “We don’t care if you’re blue, black or green. We need him [Keir Starmer] out, [Sadiq] Khan out, job done.”
However, Stand Up To Racism supporter Ash Harvey, 37, welcomed Robinson’s arrest. He said: “To put it politely, he’s a bad egg. He stirs up hatred and distracts from the actual problems.”
Large numbers of police vans and officers were scattered around the perimeters of the protests, however, there was minimal interference due to the peaceful nature.
Robinson is accused of being in contempt of court following the showing of a film at a protest in central London in July. He attended Folkestone Police station on Friday where he was separately charged with failing to provide his mobile phone PIN to police under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, Kent Police said.
