A cabinet minister has condemned scenes in Dover in which hundreds of “intimidating” masked demonstrators blocked roads and access to the port.
Dressed in black and wearing face coverings, they were heard chanting “stop the boats” on Saturday.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News’ Sunday Morning programme: “I condemn it. I mean, peaceful protest – (is an) essential part of British life, but that’s not dressing up in costumes like this and disrupting people’s lives.”
He said he would not comment “on the security and policing side of it” when pressed on the apparent unpreparedness of the police, adding that “on the whole, the police handled it very well”.
Reform’s Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick said he condemned the demonstrations: “I absolutely do. I’ve always hated people obstructing other people doing their daily life, whether it’s Just Stop Oil or whatever. And I don’t like people going around in balaclavas, which is obviously very intimidating.”
But, he added “do I understand why people are extremely frustrated? Yes, absolutely. This needs to end. This farce of the small boats has been going on for far too long.”
Traffic was stopped from going in and out of the port, and a group was later seen marching through the town chanting “whose streets? our streets!” and “stop the boats” as dozens of police officers followed.
Dover MP Mike Tapp said he was “fed up with idiots coming to Dover to cause disruption”. He said the march was clearly coordinated, adding that “in this instance, it would appear that the police didn’t know about it, and the resources were pretty thin on the ground”.
Reform’s leader Nigel Farage called the protest “wrong at every level”, telling broadcasters at his party conference in Birmingham: “You should not be allowed to be masked up, balaclaved up, and go out and protest on the streets of our country.”
In a statement on X (Twitter) at 9am on Saturday, the port said an “ongoing public order incident” was affecting all routes in and out of the port and the town. Activists could be seen marching along the A-road, chanting: “England till I die.”
In a post on social media, far-right activist Tommy Robinson suggested Saturday’s protests in Dover were part of a coordinated plan.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, wrote on X: “Simultaneously at different locations across Dover, patriots have mobilised to close down the port.” He later congratulated “DT”.
Robinson associate Daniel Thomas, known as Danny Tommo, posted video footage from the protest on Instagram on Saturday, saying: “It’s time! Protect our country! And more importantly our women and children! This is our warning!”
Mr Thomas has recently founded an anti-migrant network called the “Patriot Platform”, which says it is recruiting “people prepared to act” to “protect the future” of Britain.