Protests outside ‘migrant hotels’ intensify in London

The Met Police confirmed arrests have been made.

Transcript

00:00Six people were taken into custody following a protest outside of a London hotel accommodating

00:11asylum seekers.

00:13Crowds had gathered outside the Britannia International Hotel in Canary Wharf, the financial district

00:20of London, on Sunday afternoon where pink flares and England flags were waved.

00:27One group held up a banner reading, we are not far right, but we're not far wrong.

00:34Don't gamble with our lives.

00:36Stop the boat.

00:38That was just one of the signs held up at the protest.

00:41In a post on X, the Metropolitan Police have said that they imposed conditions using Section

00:4614 of the Public Order Act to prevent serious disruption at the protests in Canary Wharf.

00:54The group protesting against the use of the hotel by asylum seekers have been instructed

01:01to remain on the pavement opposite the Britannia Hotel.

01:08Now, the police have confirmed that six arrests were made on suspicion of breaching Section 14

01:14of the Public Order conditions, possessing Class B drugs and assaulting an emergency worker as well.

01:22The Britannia International has been the scene of repeated anti-migrant demonstrations in

01:30recent weeks.

01:32Now, these protests are taking place in towns and cities across the country, also in Epping.

01:40Epping, where Sir Winston Churchill served as an MP from 1924 to 1945, sits right at the

01:47east end of London's central line.

01:51So, what do Londoners think of these protests?

01:54I headed to the streets to find out.

01:58Well, I haven't read the detail of the protests that you just mentioned.

02:04But, I mean, I would defend the right for people to protest and make their views in public.

02:09But it is extremely worrying because you have heard generally about things being thrown, projectiles

02:16through people being attacked, who are not seeking refugee status and who are not migrants.

02:24And I think that that needs to be clamped down on.

02:29And that's extreme and rooted in prejudice and the sad times we're living in.

02:35Yeah, I mean, I have sympathy with migrants, obviously, because they are homeless and they're coming

02:39from the third world countries.

02:40They already have problems in their own countries.

02:43So, but another, apart from that, I also have sympathy towards the people of this country

02:47as well, because the government, they are giving them luxury hotels to stay there.

02:52And the citizens of this country, they are suffering.

02:55They don't have anywhere to leave.

02:56They're homeless.