‘Freedom is the right to peacefully protest’: PM accepts pro-Palestine march will go ahead on Armistice Day

Published

2 years ago

November 8, 2023

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Rishi Sunak has described a planned pro-Palestinian march in London on Armistice Day as “disrespectful” – but has accepted the protest will go ahead.

The prime minister met with the chief of the Metropolitan Police Sir Mark Rowley for a crisis meeting this afternoon – and had vowed to hold him “accountable” for the commissioner’s decision to greenlight the demonstration on 11 November.

Sir Mark had resisted calls to try and block a march taking place – and said, after looking at intelligence, the legal threshold for a ban had not been met.

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In a statement, the prime minister said: “Freedom is the right to peacefully protest. And the test of that freedom is whether our commitment to it can survive the discomfort and frustration of those who seek to use it, even if we disagree with them. We will meet that test and remain true to our principles.”

He added: “It’s welcome that the police have confirmed that the march will be away from the Cenotaph and they will ensure that the timings do not conflict with any remembrance events.

“There remains the risk of those who seek to divide society using this weekend as a platform to do so. That is what I discussed with the Metropolitan Police Commissioner in our meeting.

“The commissioner has committed to keep the Met Police’s posture under constant review based on the latest intelligence about the nature of the protests.”

Sir Mark Rowley has interpreted the law correctly

By Graham Wettone, policing analyst

Sir Mark Rowley was very careful with his words about why the pro-Palestinian protest this Saturday has not been banned.

He spoke about the legal issues around banning a gathering and then explained the possible options for a ban.

He has interpreted the law correctly and some in government appear to have misunderstood or misinterpreted it, and forgotten the police have operational independence.

Section 12 of the Public Order Act 1986 allows for marches and processions to have conditions placed on them if the senior officer “reasonably believes” it may result in serious disorder, damage or disruption.

The Met can impose conditions relating to the duration and route of a march, as placing a number restriction is totally unworkable. That is what they will be doing with the organisers this Saturday, as the organising groups have refused to cancel the protest.

Section 13 of the Public Order Act relates to banning a march. This is only applicable if the commissioner reasonably believes that the powers under Section 12 – any conditions he imposes on the procession – will not be sufficient to prevent serious disorder.

Sir Mark clearly stated that, at the moment, the intelligence does not support the “reasonable belief” that serious disorder is likely, hence he cannot legally apply for a ban under Section 13. I would agree that is probably the case – but intelligence will be developing over the next few days, and the commissioner did not rule out the situation may change before Saturday.

Sir Mark then explained the law around gatherings or assemblies. Police can impose conditions on these under Section 14 of Public Order Act, which is similar to Section 12 in that there needs to be a “reasonable belief” of “serious disorder”.

However a key difference is that Section 13 only applies to processions or marches under Section 12 – and not gatherings under Section 14. There are no legal powers to ban people gathering.

The Met tried to prevent unlawful assemblies using Section 14 across London a few years ago with Just Stop Oil, but the High Court ruled it was unlawful and that gatherings cannot be legally banned.

The likely scenario as it stands is that if a ban went in for the march, the organising groups would still have people attend a “gathering” – and the fact a ban is in place may well increase numbers. If groups then decide to separate off in different directions, and if there are significant numbers in the thousands, then arresting all is impossible.

PM ‘picking a fight with police’

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had accused Mr Sunak of “cowardice” for “picking a fight” with the police.

He tweeted: “Remembrance events must be respected. Full stop.

“But the person the PM needs to hold accountable is his home secretary. Picking a fight with the police instead of working with them is cowardice.”

Home Secretary Suella Braverman had called the pro-Palestinian demonstrations “hate marches” and said anyone who vandalised the Cenotaph on Armistice Day “must be put into a jail cell faster than their feet can touch the ground”.

No 10 denies putting pressure on Met

Downing Street denied seeking to put pressure on the Met, which is operationally independent, and insisted the meeting was about “seeking assurances” that their approach is “robust”.

The Met has said its officers were already preparing for remembrance events over the weekend and “we will do everything in our power to ensure that people who want to mark the occasion can do so safely and without disruption.”

In a statement on Tuesday, Sir Mark said: “The laws created by Parliament are clear. There is no absolute power to ban protest, therefore there will be a protest this weekend.”

He added that the use of the power to block moving protests is “incredibly rare” and must be reserved for cases where there is intelligence to suggest a “real threat” of serious disorder.

He said organisers of Saturday’s rally have shown “complete willingness to stay away from the Cenotaph and Whitehall and have no intention of disrupting the nation’s remembrance events”.

“Should this change, we’ve been clear we will use powers and conditions available to us to protect locations and events of national importance at all costs.”

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Organisers say protest will be ‘well away’ from Cenotaph

Tens of thousands have demonstrated in London in recent weeks over Palestinian deaths in the Israel-Hamas war, with 29 arrested during a fourth week of protests last Saturday, during which fireworks were thrown.

Organisers of the protest next Saturday say it will be “well away” from the Cenotaph – going from Hyde Park, around a mile from the war memorial in Whitehall, to the US embassy – and won’t start until after the 11am silence.

The Met chief will likely come under further pressure to change his mind in the coming days, with Cabinet ministers stressing discussions are ongoing.

Health Secretary Steve Barclay told Sky News that 11 November was the “wrong day” for protest action in London and “there’ll be ongoing discussions on this”.

He said: “There is a legal threshold and the Commissioner is of the view that that legal threshold has not been met.

“Obviously, the Home Office and colleagues will discuss that over the course of the day.”

UK

NHS facing ‘worst case scenario’ December amid ‘super flu’ surge

Published

5 hours ago

December 11, 2025

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NHS facing 'worst case scenario' December amid 'super flu' surge

NHS England has warned the health service is facing a “worst case scenario” December with a surge of “super flu”.

The warning comes as new figures revealed the number of people in hospital with flu have increased by more than half in just one week.

Catch up as it happened: NHS warns of ‘worst-case scenario’ as ‘super flu’ surges

Latest figures show:

• An average of 2,660 patients were in hospital per day with flu last week

• This is the highest ever for this time of year and up 55% on last week

• At this point last year the number stood at 1,861 patients, while in 2023 it was just 402

Health service bosses are warning the number of flu patients in hospital has already increased sharply since the week covered by this data – with no peak in sight.

Virus outbreaks coincide with doctors’ strikes

Weekly flu numbers in England peaked at 5,408 patients last winter and reached 5,441 over the winter of 2022/23, the highest level since the pandemic.

Alongside rocketing flu, the number of norovirus patients in hospital has also risen by 35%.

The NHS is now warning winter viruses are starting to “engulf hospitals”.

Demand for A&Es and ambulance services is also soaring.

New monthly figures show A&E attendances were a record for November at 2.35 million – more than 30,000 higher than November 2024.

In addition, there were 48,814 more ambulance incidents (802,525) compared with last year (753,711).

Some hospitals across the country have asked staff, patients and visitors to wear face masks to cut the spread of flu, while others have gone in and out of critical incident status due to the high number of people attending A&E.

The record-breaking demand on the NHS coincides with a resident doctors’ strike from 17 to 22 December over pay and jobs – sparking fears of major disruption for patients in the run up to Christmas.

People are being advised to attend any planned appointments scheduled during the strikes unless they have been contacted to reschedule.

Flu vaccinations on the up… who can get one?

The NHS is urging anyone eligible to get their flu vaccination to help prevent them getting seriously ill.

Latest figures show more than 17.4 million people have been vaccinated so far this year, more than 381,000 higher than last year.

You can get it if you:

• Are 65 or over in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

• Are pregnant

• Live in a care home

• Are the main carer for an older or disabled person, or receive carer’s allowance

• Live with someone who has a weakened immune system

• Are a frontline health and social care worker

• Are of school age

• Have certain medical conditions (the NHS has a full list)

Wes Streeting, the health secretary, warned of a “tidal wave of flu tearing through our hospitals”.

“We are working with the NHS to make sure it is able to cope with this as best as possible,” he said.

Analysis – Why these flu figures are so troubling

NHSE press releases can be prone to hyperbole: a “tsunami of infections, worst case scenarios” and “tidal wave of flu surging through hospitals” are recent examples.

But the health service’s headline writers can be allowed this excess right now.

The latest flu numbers are bad. Really bad and could get worse. One recent projection was 8,000 patients, before this wave subsides.

But that’s where the problem lies. There is no peak in sight.

We know flu season has come early. It’s going to last longer. But there’s uncertainty over when we expect to see infections falling.

Hospitals are at capacity. Most of those receiving care are elderly or have underlying health conditions.

But younger, fitter people can’t afford to be complacent.

This is a particularly nasty strain that is highly infectious. Nobody is immune. Except those people who have protected themselves with a vaccine.

Warning ‘extremely challenging few weeks ahead’

Professor Meghana Pandit, NHS national medical director, warned the health service faces “an extremely challenging few weeks ahead” with “staff being pushed to the limit”.

She said: “With record demand for A&E and ambulances and an impending resident doctors’ strike, this unprecedented wave of super flu is leaving the NHS facing a worst-case scenario for this time of year – with staff being pushed to the limit to keep providing the best possible care for patients.

“The numbers of patients in hospital with flu is extremely high for this time of year. Even worse, it continues to rise and the peak is not in sight yet, so the NHS faces an extremely challenging few weeks ahead.”

She added: “We have prepared earlier for winter than ever before, and stress-tested services to ensure people have a range of ways to get the help they need and avoid needing to go to A&E.

“For non-life-threatening care, people should call NHS 111 or use 111 online, which can direct you to the most appropriate place, and use A&E and 999 for life threatening conditions and serious injuries.”

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Mr Streeting has offered the British Medical Association (BMA) a last-minute deal in the hope doctors will call off the walkout, which starts next Wednesday.

The doctors’ union has agreed to put the offer to members over the coming day, and is expected to announced a decision on Monday, just two days before the planned strike.

The offer includes a fast expansion of specialist training posts as well as covering out-of-pocket expenses such as exam fees, but does not include extra pay.

UK

Super flu strikes during perfect storm for NHS

Published

7 hours ago

December 11, 2025

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Super flu strikes during perfect storm for NHS

The spread of subclade K, the super flu, is picking up – and it’s not looking good for the NHS.

An average of just under 2,700 hospital beds a day in England were occupied by patients with flu last week.

There are fears that could jump to somewhere between 5,000 and 8,000 by the end of this week.

That’s on top of COVID and RSV.

And with the possibility of a five-day strike by resident (junior) doctors next week, it’s a perfect storm for hospitals.

Christmas flu

Children are the super-spreaders of flu. It races around classrooms and some schools have temporarily shut because of the impact.

The Christmas holidays aren’t far off. They are likely to put the brakes on children passing around the virus.

But it’s also a time of year when families mix with elderly relatives, who are more likely to be hit hard by the infection – perhaps even needing hospital care.

So while the holidays may temporarily slow the overall rise in infections, the impact on hospitals could get much worse.

Subclade K

Flu is spreading so rapidly at the moment because immunity to subclade K from previous infections and vaccinations is low.

The virus – a variant of the H3N2 flu strain – suddenly acquired seven new mutations in late summer.

Every 100 people infected with seasonal flu would typically pass the virus on to 120 others.

With subclade K, it’s 140.

And that’s why cases are rising so quickly on the charts.

At the moment, 18 in every 100,000 patients in England are consulting their GP with flu-like symptoms. That’s still well short of the peak of around 50 in every 100,000 in 2017/18, the worst flu outbreak in recent years.

The grim reality of flu

Flu is a really unpleasant disease, nothing like a cold. I’ve had it twice in my life and it physically hurt to get out of bed. It’s grim.

Most people get over it with a few days’ rest and paracetamol to take the edge off the fever.

But vulnerable people can become seriously ill. In the outbreak of 2017/18, around 22,000 died.

That’s why the NHS is urging people in certain groups – the over 65s, those with underlying health conditions, pregnant women, carers and children – to get the jab.

The vaccine isn’t a great match for subclade K, but still reduces the chance of hospital admission by 30-40% in adults.

It’s impossible to say when the spread will peak, but the latest figures suggest the outbreak is far from over.

UK

Hundreds of ‘high-value’ artefacts stolen from museum in Bristol as police issue appeal

Published

11 hours ago

December 11, 2025

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Hundreds of 'high-value' artefacts stolen from museum in Bristol as police issue appeal

More than 600 artefacts have been stolen from a building housing items belonging to a museum in Bristol.

The items were taken from Bristol Museum’s British Empire and Commonwealth collection on 25 September, Avon and Somerset Police said.

The force described the burglary as involving “high-value” artefacts, as they appealed for the public’s help in identifying people caught on CCTV.

It is not clear why the appeal is being issued more than two months after the burglary occurred.

The break-in took place between 1am and 2am on Thursday 25 September when a group of four unknown males gained entry to a building in the Cumberland Road area of the city.

Detectives say they hope the four people on CCTV will be able to aid them with their enquiries.

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