Unity Rally outnumbers anti-illegal immigration protest in Lancaster

A Unity Rally outnumbered an anti-illegal immigration protest as the two sides had a tense stand-off outside Lancaster Town Hall.

An estimated crowd of around 200 people, chanting anti-fascist messages, gathered on the steps of the town hall on Sunday morning.

The Unity Rally had been called in response to a planned march and demonstration which had been publicised online by Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, co-founder of the far right-wing English Defence League.

This protest had been organised by a Lancaster man following the deaths of three young girls in a knife attack in Southport on Monday.

He said in an online video that it was to "stand in solidarity with what's happened in Southport" and "all the illegal migration which has got to stop".

As they stood on the town hall steps having arrived before 9am on Sunday morning, the Unity Rally members chanted "Lancaster is anti-fascist!" and sang "There are many many more of us than you!"

Unity Rally supporters are pictured below on Sunday.

Meanwhile a smaller group, estimated to number around 60 people, some carrying Union and England flags, started gathering in Dalton Square opposite the town hall just before 10am.

They chanted "England 'til I die!" and "Stop the Boats!" as a cordon of police stood between the two groups.

As this stand-off ended after several minutes, the smaller group then marched from the Square, singing "Rule Britannia" and chanting "Save our kids!"

They went down Gage Street through Ffrances Passage onto Penny Street, then through the city centre up to Lancaster Castle, escorted by police (below).

Most of the Unity Rally (below), which included some local councillors, remained on the town hall steps.

A small number of people followed the march up to the castle chanting "Say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here!"

The marchers assembled outside the castle gates, where once again there were chants and angry yells exchanged from both sides of a police cordon.

There were also shouts heard near the castle, through a megaphone, of "Keep it peaceful!"

The march then returned into the city centre, eventually heading up Great John Street to the junction of Gage Street, where supporters of Tommy Robinson sang his name.

There, police again formed a cordon to ensure members of the two groups stayed apart, holding up traffic for a short time. 

Tensions rose as the group with England flags, including a small number with their faces covered, returned to Dalton Square where the large Unity Rally group were still on the steps, determined to ensure the other side did not get close to the town hall.

Again there were duelling chants and shouting between the two groups, a police van being parked between them.

Eventually at around 11.15am, the smaller group dispersed and a number of them headed to gather on Spring Garden Street, again accompanied by police.

Meanwhile the Unity Rally supporters remained in their position at the town hall, and were still there into the afternoon.

Several Beyond Radio reporters were at the scene and from what we saw, the morning's protests appeared to have mainly passed off without turning violent. 

But a Lancaster Area Police spokesperson said on Sunday afternoon that they'd put a 24-hour dispersal order in place to give police extra powers to deal with any anti-social behaviour.

"We know that many of you will be aware of a planned protest which is ongoing in Lancaster this afternoon, said a police spokesperson.

"We are doing everything in our power to keep you, the public, safe. With that in mind, a Section 34 dispersal order has been put in place to prevent disorder and allow other members of the community to enjoy the city without any issue.

"We don’t make decisions like this lightly, and we know that the majority of those who attend intend to express their views in in a lawful manner. However, it has now become necessary due to disorder in the city.

"The order came into effect at 11.50am today and runs until 11.50am tomorrow (5th August). We have the ability to extend the order if there is a necessity to do so.

"The area covered by the order incorporates the A6, Thurnham Street, China Street, Cable Street, North Road, Great John Street and the area surrounding Dalton Square but does not include Dalton Square itself."

There have been several incidents of violent disorder in cities across the UK over the past few days, including on Saturday, stoked by a wave of misinformation online about the Southport attacker.

The Unity Rally had been advertised online as a counter protest, by Stand Up to Racism Lancaster and Morecambe, Lancaster and Morecambe District of the NEU, and Lancaster and Morecambe Trades Union Council. 

One of the counter-protesters, a man from Lancaster who was on the steps of the town hall on Sunday, told Beyond Radio: "I was there firstly because right wing thugs have hijacked a tragedy in Southport and made it about race and immigration rather than grieving for and supporting the families of those affected. 

"I equally cannot stand the thought of our town hall steps being taken over in our diverse and tolerant city so I had to be there to stop that happening. 

"Seeing a number of these people who appeared to have come from out of town standing pretending they represented the Union flag made me really angry. 

"I’d also say the counter protest was excellently organised and everyone remained peaceful and positive throughout."

Councillor Phillip Black, leader of Lancaster City Council, said: “The city council is committed to making our district a welcoming, diverse, and thriving place for everyone to live, work and visit.

 “We strongly condemn anyone who tries to put this in jeopardy and seeks to sow division and destroy the good community relations we enjoy in our district.

“I’d like to thank the police for their professionalism and hard work over the weekend in preventing the kind of violent disorder we have seen elsewhere.”

Meanwhile a number of events and venues in Lancaster were affected by the protests on Sunday.

Lancaster BID's scheduled live music event in Market Square was cancelled and the Tap House pub on Gage Street closed for the day due to management's concerns over its close proximity to the protests.