Anti-immigration protests in Britain: Masked demonstrators block roads

Hundreds of people, many dressed in black with their faces covered, tried to stop buses carrying migrants in Portsmouth after about 140 people crossed to the English coast. Protesters blocked the vehicles as they headed to a processing center in Kent.

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It is time to say enough.

Officials there are expected to establish the migrants’ basic details and assess their immigration status, including whether any asylum applications have grounds or whether deportation should follow. Protesters shouted, “Shame on you.” Daniel Thomas, a protest leader closely linked to far-right activist Tommy Robinson, told the crowd, “It is time to say enough.”

The British Home Office said the right to peaceful protest was fundamental to democracy but could not cross into disorder. Finance Minister Emma Reynolds told Sky News that the events had gone too far. “It was hooliganism and intimidation,” she said.

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The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy, but it must never cross the line and turn into disorder.

The arrival in Portsmouth has drawn attention because migrant boats do not usually land so far west. The main route remains near Dover, where similar protests on Saturday disrupted ferry operations between Britain and France. Donna Jones, Hampshire’s Conservative police and crime commissioner, warned that the area lacked the infrastructure to handle a possible increase in migrant arrivals. She said she was very concerned Portsmouth could become a preferred destination for people smugglers.

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It was hooliganism and intimidation.

Official figures show crossings of the English Channel have fallen 43 percent so far this year compared with the same period last year. The Home Office attributes the decline partly to cooperation with French authorities and action against people-smuggling gangs.

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I am very concerned that Portsmouth could become a preferred destination for people smugglers.