Police could be allowed to intervene before protests become highly disruptive under new measures set to be considered in UK Parliament, the UK Government has confirmed.
An amendment to the Public Order Bill, due to be introduced today (Monday, Jan 16) will aim to give police greater clarity about when they can intervene to stop demonstrators blocking roads or slow marching. The Bill is aimed at curbing the guerrilla tactics used by groups like Insulate Britain and Extinction Rebellion.
The proposals, backed by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, came after police chiefs claimed there was some uncertainty over what could be currently classed as “serious disruption” under existing law. According to Downing Street, under the proposed changes, police would not need to wait for disruption to take place and could shut demonstrations down before they escalated.
