British royal security to be reviewed
An urgent review of security for the royal family will be delivered this week following an attack on a car carrying Prince Charles, the heir to the throne, Home Secretary (interior minister) Theresa May said Monday.
May said anarchists and street gangs had infiltrated student protests that ended in rioting in central London last Thursday. Protesters battered their way into the Treasury and fought with police after parliament approved plans to increase tuition fees for university students.
Blaming police tactics was “ridiculous and unfair” when protesters had unleashed a barrage of stones, paint, golf balls and flares and attacked officers with metal barriers, May said.
One of the defining images of the protests was that of Charles and wife Camilla open-mouthed in horror when protesters attacked their Rolls-Royce en route to a London theatre, cracking a window and spattering the limousine with paint.
Although the couple were unhurt, the attack raised questions about royal security, which will be in the spotlight next year when Charles’ son Prince William marries in Westminster Abbey.
A review of how the royal family is protected will be completed by Friday, May told lawmakers.
WATER CANNONS?
Police Commander Bob Broadhurst said protesters who engaged in “reckless violence” would be tracked down. He also did not rule out the possible use of water cannons against similar demonstrations in the future.
“There are no current plans to use water cannons on the streets of the capital but we would be foolish if we did not take time to look at tactics such as this to see if it might be appropriate in the future,” he said.
The home secretary blamed the violence, for which 39 people have been arrested, on a combination of errant students, hard-core activists and street gangs.
“These acts were not perpetrated by a small minority but by a significant number of troublemakers,” she said.
“Some students behaved disgracefully, but the police also assess that the protests were infiltrated by organised groups of hard-core activists and street gangs bent on violence.”
There were 2,800 police on the streets around parliament.
Officers in riot helmets fought with protesters and mounted police charges were also used. Another controversial police tactic employed was so-called “kettling,” the corralling of large numbers of protesters for hours.
Critics say this causes tensions to boil over into violence.
May said she did not want to see the use of water cannons on the streets of London.
Source: Reuters