UK slammed for plan to stifle peaceful pr8k8 com.otest

Proposed bill, if passed, will constitute 'all-out assault on the right to protest'

The government has been promising a clampdown on disruptive protests since the Conservative Party conference in October.

The idea, contained in the proposed Public Order Bill, was among a raft of potential legislation unveiled on Tuesday, during the State Opening of Parliament.

The planned law was drafted in response to a series of disruptive protests that have, at times, brought UK cities to a standstill, including blockades by Extinction Rebellion supporters of public transport facilities, and sit-ins on the four-lane orbital highway around London by Insulate Britain.

While many people have called on the government to do more to stop such protests, others have said the right to peaceful expression of a view should not be eroded.

The government tried to introduce similar measures earlier this year and was ultimately defeated in a vote in the House of Lords.

Martha Spurrier, director of the Liberty human rights group, said: "This vote is a crucial victory for everyone who has a cause they believe in."

She said attempts to curtail peaceful gatherings were "an all-out assault on the right to protest" and that increased police powers would only "increase discrimination and the danger of police interactions".

The opposition Labour Party has also criticized the proposed legislation.

But Home Secretary Priti Patel said: "The law-abiding, responsible majority have had enough of anti-social, disruptive protests carried out by a self-indulgent minority who seem to revel in causing mayhem and misery for the rest of us."

Measures included in the Public Order Bill, if passed by Parliament, would include a provision for protesters to be jailed for six months for gluing themselves to public transport infrastructure or roads. Police officers will also be able to stop and search anyone close to a protest.

Moreover, key national infrastructure, which includes airports and even printing presses, will be protected from disruption, with maximum prison sentences of 12 months and unlimited fines available to deter those targeting them.

Additionally, new Serious Disruption Prevention Orders would give the police the power to block suspected would-be protesters from traveling toward certain events.

The Guardian newspaper said the proposed bill seems to be aimed specifically at combatting the tactics of radical environmental groups, including Extinction Rebellion, Insulate Britain, and Just Stop Oil, which have blocked refineries and caused panic among motorists.

The paper said the hard line on law and order will be popular among rank-and-file members of the ruling Conservative Party and its supporters, at a time when the prime minister has been under pressure over scandals.

At a time when Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been promising a clampdown on disruptive protests, the new legislation is now likely to become a high priority for ministers.