London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Feb 26, 2026

Police made tough calls on Coronation arrests, says minister

Police made tough calls on Coronation arrests, says minister

The police had to make "tough choices" while handling protests during the Coronation, a minister has said, following criticism over arrests.

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer told BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg the police were right to factor in the scale and global-nature of the event.

MPs, human rights groups and a former chief constable have criticised the police's tactics.

Police said on Sunday that 64 people were arrested during the Coronation.

The Metropolitan Police had previously said 52 arrests were made on Saturday. In its latest update, it said four people had been charged, while another person arrested remains in custody for non-payment of fines.

Fifty-seven people have been released on bail while two others will face no further police action.

Among those held on Saturday was the head of the anti-monarchy group Republic, Graham Smith. He was released after 16 hours in custody and said there was "no longer a right to peaceful protest in the UK".

Other concerns have been raised over reports three volunteers with a Westminster-based women's safety programme had been arrested while handing out rape alarms.

The Met said it received intelligence protesters were planning to use rape alarms to disrupt coronation proceedings.

Ms Frazer said the right to protest was "really important" and people should be heard but there had been a recent change in protesters' tactics.

Protesters have been stopping people going about their day-to-day lives, she said, and there was a need to redress that balance.

Officers would have made operational decisions on a case-by-case basis, she said, taking into account the scale of the Coronation celebrations.

"We were on the global stage, there were 200 foreign dignitaries in the UK, in London at an event, millions of people watching and hundreds of thousands of people at the scene," she added.

Labour's shadow health secretary Wes Streeting told the BBC he was reassured the Met were aware of a gap in public confidence over policing and the force was "explaining and justifying" why they made some of the arrests.

He said Labour would "wait and see" whether the force got the balance right, adding "accountability" over policing decisions was important.

Mr Streeting said if they did not get it right, it was important to "hold your hands up".

The King and Queen went past some protesters on their way to Westminster Abbey for the Coronation ceremony


Metropolitan Police Commander Karen Findlay defended her officers' response, saying they had a duty to intervene "when protest becomes criminal and may cause serious disruption".

She added the Coronation was a "once-in-a-generation event" which was a key consideration in their assessment.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in the rain in central London on Saturday, with chants including "down with the Crown", "don't talk to the police" and "get a real job".

But Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said some of the arrests "raise questions" over the Met's actions, adding he has "sought urgent clarity" whilst investigations are ongoing.

Other protests were organised in Cardiff, Glasgow and Edinburgh. No arrests were reported outside London.

While campaigners insisted their protests were peaceful, the police said they had intelligence that groups were "determined to disrupt" the occasion.

Leader of the Liberal Democrats Sir Ed Davey said he was not sure about the exact circumstances of the arrest, and called for more detail from the police.

Speaking to the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg, he criticised the government for "passing legislation to clamp down on protest that breached British traditions of civil liberties".

Several Labour MPs have also been critical of the Met's response. Senior backbencher Sir Chris Bryant said on Twitter that "freedom of speech is the silver thread that runs through a parliamentary constitutional monarchy".

In a statement on Sunday, Republic chief Mr Smith said the arrests had "destroyed whatever trust might have existed between peaceful protesters and the Metropolitan police".

"What is the point in being open and candid with the police, working with their liaison officers and meeting senior commanders, if all their promises and undertakings turn out to be a lie?"

Mr Smith was arrested early on Saturday - before the Coronation began - at a protest in Trafalgar Square.

The Met said it had confiscated "lock-on devices" which protesters can use to secure themselves to things like railings.

It has now become illegal to prepare to lock-on following changes to the law passed this week.

But Matt Turnbull, another member of Republic who was arrested, said the straps were being used to hold the placards and had been "misconstrued" as lock-on devices.

A former police chief has said she is "very disappointed" by the arrest of protesters and strongly criticised the new powers.

Sue Sim, a former chief constable with Northumbria Police and a specialist in public order policing, said she was "very disappointed" by the arrest of protesters and called the new powers "draconian".

"I think when you're talking about terrorism, where people's lives are at risk that's a very different thing. But where you are talking about peaceful protest the whole thing for me is, what type of society do we want? We do not want a totalitarian police state," she told BBC Radio 4's World This Weekend.

Concerns about the police's approach were also raised by Westminster City Council over reports that volunteers with its Night Star women's safety programme had been detained and questioned after being stopped by officers while handing out rape alarms.

Councillor Aicha Less said the authority was working with the Met to establish what happened and was in touch with volunteers to make sure they were being supported.

The Met said it had received intelligence about plans to use rape alarms to disrupt the Coronation procession by scaring military horses, causing "significant risk to the safety of the public and the riders".

The force said three people were arrested in the Soho area of London over suspicion of conspiracy to commit public nuisance.

One man was also further arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods. All three have since been released.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said the force were "aware of and understand there is public concern over these arrests" and added the matter was still under investigation.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
So, what's happened is, I think, government policy, not just under Labour, but under the Conservatives as well, has driven a lot of small landlords out of business.
Larry Summers, the former U.S. Treasury Secretary, is resigning from Harvard University as fallout continues over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, with the Dow gaining about six-tenths of a percent, the S&P 500 adding eight-tenths of a percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbing roughly one-and-a-quarter percent.
From fears of AI-fuelled unemployment to Big Tech's record investment, this is AI Weekly.
Apple just dropped iOS 26.4.
US Lawmakers Seek Briefing from UK Over Reported Encryption Order Directed at Apple
UK Business Secretary Calls on EU to Remove Trade Barriers Hindering Growth
Legal Pathways for Removing Prince Andrew from Britain’s Line of Succession Examined
PM Netanyahu welcome India PM Narendra Modi to Israel
Shadow Diplomacy: How Harry and Meghan’s Jordan Trip Undermines the Monarchy
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, co-owner of Manchester United, comments on immigration in the UK.
Bill Gates, the UN and the WEF are attempting to construct "a giant digital gulag for all of humanity" via digital ID, CBDCs and vaccine passport infrastructure.
Britain’s Channel Crisis: Paying Billions While the Boats Keep Coming
Downing Street’s Veteran Deception Scandal
UK HealthCare Expands ‘Food as Health’ Initiative Statewide to Tackle Chronic Illness in Kentucky
Leonardo Chief Says UK Set to Decide on New Medium Helicopter Programme
UK Slows Chagos Islands Agreement After Concerns Raised in Washington
European and UK Stock Markets Reach Fresh Highs as Banks and Miners Lead Rally
UK Government Insists Chagos Islands Negotiations Continue After Minister’s ‘Pause’ Remark
No Confirmed Deal for Engie to Acquire UK Power Networks Amid Market Speculation
UK Reaffirms Updated Entry Requirements for Travellers as of February 25, 2026
General Atlantic to sell equity stake in ByteDance, valuing the company at $550 billion
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz Secures Pledge from China for Greater Imports of Quality Goods
Lord Mandelson Condemns Arrest as Driven by ‘Baseless Suggestion’ He Would Flee Abroad
Former UK Ambassador Released on Bail Following Arrest in Epstein-Linked Investigation
UK Parliament Orders Release of Former Prince Andrew’s Government Vetting Files
Reddit Fined £14 Million by UK Regulator Over Failures in Age Verification Controls
UK Moves to Tighten Regulation of Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video Under New Media Rules
British Woman Who Reported Rape in Hong Kong Faces Possible Prosecution
'Christianity is the religion that has made this country great.'
Man Receives Parking Ticket 38 Years After Offense: ‘City Officials Said It’s Legitimate’
Woman Receives Gift Card for Christmas – Discovers It Is ‘Worth’ 63,000,000,000,000,000 Pounds
UK Sanctions New Zealand Insurer Maritime Mutual Following Allegations Over Russian Oil Cover
Reform MP Danny Kruger Condemns UK’s ‘Unregulated Sexual Economy’ in Call for Tougher Controls
The Show Must Go On: Prince William and Kate Middleton Shine at the BAFTAs Amid Andrew’s Arrest
UK Sanctions Russian ‘Illicit Oil Traders’ After Email Blunder Exposes Sanctions Evasion Network
Russia Amplifies Baseless Claims That UK and France Plan to Arm Ukraine with Nuclear Weapons
UK Imposes Sanctions on Two Georgian Television Channels Over Alleged Russian Disinformation
United States National Parks See Noticeable Drop in Visitors from Canada, U.K. and Australia
UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand Escalate Sanctions on Russia as Ukraine War Marks Four Years
I Gave Andrew a Nude Massage Inside Buckingham Palace
UK Economy Faces Acute Strain as Trump’s Global Tariff Reshapes Trade Landscape
UK Signals Retaliation Is Possible as New US Tariff Policy Threatens Trade Stability
British Police Arrest Former Ambassador Peter Mandelson in Epstein-Related Misconduct Probe
Australia Officially Supports Proposal to Remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from Royal Succession
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan remains silent on ISIS brides' resettlement plans in Melbourne
Former UK Ambassador Peter Mandelson Arrested in Connection with Jeffrey Epstein
Jacob Rees Mogg afraid to talk about Peter Mandelson arrest on “suspicion of misconduct in a public office” (Pedophilia, corruption, etc.)
United Nations Calls for Global Action Against Disinformation and Hate Speech Online
Tucker Carlson warns of an inevitable clash in Western societies over mass migration
×