Police Injured and Vehicles Damaged as Anti-Migrant Protest Turns Violent in Portsmouth

An anti-migrant protest in Portsmouth turned violent after about 140 migrants arrived by boat, leaving several police officers injured and vehicles belonging to police, the Coastguard and Border Force damaged.

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serious questions to answer

Hundreds gathered in the English coastal city on Sunday after two RNLI boats brought the migrants ashore. Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said officers and other emergency personnel were attacked. A small number of officers received treatment at the scene, but no member of the public or any agency suffered serious injuries.

The migrants had travelled in a dinghy intercepted in the English Channel. The boat had left the Jobourg area of Normandy in northern France before two RNLI vessels took those aboard to Portsmouth. The journey was believed to be among the longest made by a small boat carrying migrants, and arrivals this far west on the English coast are relatively uncommon.

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put people at risk

Portsmouth council leader Steve Pitt criticized the choice of disembarkation site. He said the Home Office had “serious questions to answer” over what he called an unsuitable location that “put people at risk”. The demonstration ended at about 4 a.m. on Monday.

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Stop the boats

The unrest came a day after a separate protest in Dover, where about 200 masked demonstrators blocked access roads to the port for several hours and chanted “Stop the boats”. Kent Police said the disruption caused significant traffic problems, while noting that wearing a face covering was not itself a criminal offence. Assistant Chief Constable Nigel Brookes said peaceful protesters had “no need” to cover their faces. Minister Emma Reynolds condemned those involved as “thuggish”.

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thuggish