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Tensions flared once again across the UK on Saturday as police made multiple arrests during opposing protests over immigration.
In Manchester, far-right group Britain First held a demonstration in the city centre calling for large-scale “remigration,” drawing counter-protests from anti-racism campaigners. Brief confrontations erupted between the two sides at the start of the march before officers moved in to separate them, according to an AFP journalist on the ground.
One protester, 66-year-old Brendan O’Reilly, expressed frustration over immigration levels, saying: “Send them back, don’t let them in. Our hotels are packed with immigrants while our own people are homeless, begging on the streets.”
Among the counter-protesters was Judy, a retired nurse aged 60, who told AFP she came to stand against hatred. “Do they want everyone to go back, or is it just people with brown skin?” she asked. “I suspect it’s the latter.”
Meanwhile, in central London, tensions also boiled over outside a hotel in the Barbican area that houses asylum seekers. Clashes broke out between rival groups before police intervened.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed via social media that officers had dispersed demonstrators who were breaching protest conditions at a nearby junction. “There have been nine arrests so far, with seven for breaching Public Order Act conditions,” the force said.
Saturday’s unrest is part of a wider trend of heightened anti-immigration activity across the UK in recent weeks, with previous flashpoints recorded in areas including Epping in north-east London.
