The police chief in charge of security in Windsor has said he will have “a lower tolerance” for disruption caused by protest due to the “iconic” nature of the coronation.
The Thames Valley police assistant chief constable Christian Bunt, the gold commander for the policing operation over the coming weekend, also said he would make use of new public order laws.
He said he had to balance the right to protest with the rights of those attending to enjoy events, such as the coronation concert in the town’s castle.
The human rights group Liberty said Bunt’s comments set a “really dangerous precedent” that would “discourage lots of people from feeling able to stand up for what they believe in”, while the environmental activist group Just Stop Oil said the move was not about “protecting the rights of spectators” but “silencing dissent”.
Windsor will be the biggest focal point for the weekend’s events outside London. Big screens will be placed along the Long Walk, the 2.5-mile promenade through Windsor Great Park, on Saturday and 20,000 ticket holders will attend the concert on Sunday. Hundreds of officers, including covert, firearms and search specialists, will police the occasion.
There has been criticism of the government for fast-tracking legislation designed to crack down on protests. The Public Order Act introduces a 12-month prison sentence for protesters who block roads and a six-month prison sentence or unlimited fine for anyone who locks themself on to other people, objects or buildings. Police will also be able to stop and search protesters who they suspect are setting out to cause “disruption”.
In a briefing to journalists, Bunt, who led the security operation in Windsor for the queen’s funeral, said: “While the event in Windsor is very different in nature [to London], we’ve not had any groups or individuals showing interest in protesting in Windsor up to now, I’m also alive to the fact that we could get protest in Windsor over the weekend. My policing operation is planned for this. We will be consistent and fair in our response as we always are; we have lots of experience in Thames Valley police in supporting and facilitating protest.
“My strategic objective is to provide a lawful and proportionate response to protest, balancing the rights of those who want to protest peacefully with those who want to lawfully go about their business and enjoy the events in Windsor. Thames Valley police respect the rights of those wanting to protest peacefully and legally, and we are experienced in doing so, and our response will be lawful and proportionate.
“I would encourage any individuals or groups looking to protest over the weekend to make contact with us at the earliest opportunity. We will have a range of specialist officers to support response to protest. We need to balance the rights of individuals to protest with the rights of those attending to enjoy the event and also need to consider maintaining public order.”
On using the new powers, he added: “Due to the nature of the event, I will be adopting a lower tolerance level for any disruption, protest or otherwise; this includes action that undermines the safety of the event or poses a serious risk of disruption to the celebrations.
“We have a range of existing legislation we can use, while we also have at our disposal the new public order legislation passed this week.”
Asked by the Guardian if he could elaborate further on his “lower tolerance” threshold, he said: “I need to be very careful to make sure we’re not having disorder … or breaches of the peace resulting from protest activity and we need to make sure we’re not having serious disruption to the event.
“It’s a large security event, it’s a large public safety event with thousands of people attending, and for that reason, that’s why my threshold for protest [is lower], and that’s particularly specific to protest that would cause serious disruption to the event or would cause serious risk to safety.
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“If people want to protest lawfully peacefully, and it doesn’t interfere with any of that, then that’s absolutely fine, we will facilitate it, but if it does interfere with the safety operation or cause any significant public disorder issues, then we would need to act.”
Liberty’s policy and campaigns manager, Emmanuelle Andrews, said: “The policing of the coronation across the country is shaping up to be a human rights nightmare. Protest is not a gift from the state; it’s our fundamental right and should be respected as such.
“The police and the government have created a really hostile environment for protesters over the past few years, and everything we’ve seen around the coronation has added to that. Just this week we’ve seen protest groups sent intimidatory letters, anti-protest laws rushed through, and plans for facial recognition to be deployed against millions of people.
“Comments like this on the policing of the coronation are going to discourage lots of people from feeling able to stand up for what they believe in. It’s setting a really dangerous precedent for us as a supposedly democratic nation.”
A spokesperson for Just Stop Oil, which has garnered attention for its protests over the past year, including blocking roads, said: “This isn’t about protecting the rights of spectators; it’s about silencing dissent. The government and the police are trying to intimidate us, but we won’t be deterred.
“Our government is enacting policies that will destroy the conditions that make human life possible. The stakes could not be higher. We will continue to do whatever is non-violently necessary to halt new oil and gas.”
Bunt said facial recognition technology would not be used in Windsor over the weekend as Thames Valley police did not have the capability, after it emerged that the Met police would be deploying it in the capital.
