Cllr Liam Robinson has condemned the latest proposed demonstration in the north of the city
An anti-immigration protest march down County Road in Walton, Liverpool is planned(Image: Liverpool Echo)
County Road is being targeted by the far right to drive “fear, hate and intimidation” through communities according to the leader of Liverpool Council. Ahead of a planned anti-immigration protest through Walton tomorrow, Cllr Liam Robinson said an “unacceptable pattern” was emerging along the main route through the north of the city.
The planned demonstration follows last month’s protest which saw large numbers of people march brandishing English flags and banners of “no more illegals” and “mass deportations”. Tomorrow’s protest has been promoted on social media by right-wing accounts.
Merseyside Police has confirmed a dispersal zone will be in place between 10am on Saturday and 9.59am on Sunday. Cllr Robinson told the ECHO said the proposed march was being deliberately organised to “reopen the wounds” of riots in the summer of 2024 when a library was torched.
The dispersal notice covers a large area of north Liverpool including Queens Drive, Utting Avenue, Arkles Lane, Wylva Road, Walton Breck Road, Everton Valley, Kirkdale Road, Great Mersey Street, Stanley Road, Melrose Road, Brewster Street and Breeze Hill. It includes all roads, transport hubs and public spaces within these boundaries.
The order gives police officers and police community support traffic officers powers to direct people they suspect are causing or likely to cause crime, nuisance or anti-social behaviour to members of the public to leave a designated area and not return for up to 48 hours. A designated protest area will also be in place and will take effect at 10am and will run until 4pm.
This new legislation introduced just this week gives police officers new powers in relation to protests. Cllr Robinson was blunt in his assessment of the planned demonstration.
Leader of Liverpool City Council Liam Robinson(Image: Danny Lawson/PA Wire)
He said: “That type of hate filled activity, which is what I believe it is, on County Road or anywhere else in this city is completely and utterly unacceptable, it’s not welcome in this city.
“It’s an unacceptable pattern of targeting a certain location and a certain community where the vast majority of people who live in that community don’t want it there.
“Think about all the potential disruption it will cause; shops having to close, the library and other services having to close, the road being disrupted as one of the key arteries in and out of the city, then people having to make plans who live in that community about how they’re going to go about their daily life, they shouldn’t have to be disrupted that way.”
Under the legislation granted to police, officers have the power to seize any items, including vehicles, used in the commission of anti-social behaviour. Should a person who has previously been directed to leave the area return, an offence would be committed, which they may ultimately be arrested for.
Cllr Robinson added: “We welcome that the police have got additional powers, I’ve actually written to the Chief Constable to say I think there’s a strong argument to utilise those powers because I believe County Road is being targeted by far right elements organising these things.
“I think it’s about trying to create division, I think it’s about trying to deliberately reopen the wounds of what happened in 2024, I think it’s designed to cause fear, hate and intimidation and that’s not welcome in this city.
“The vast majority of people look out for one another regardless of colour, creed, background or religion or characteristic and I know that’s what the vast majority of us are really proud of in this city and we’ll keep standing up to anyone who keeps perpetuating this hate.
“This occasion, the intelligence is very low level, it appears to be nowhere near as organised as the last one, but that doesn’t make it acceptable in the slightest, none of this kind of stuff is acceptable in this city or anywhere in the country.”