Extinction Rebellion protesters deface Churchill statue despite police presence

Police faced questions on Thursday after protesters were allowed to deface Sir Winston Churchill's statue in Parliament Square during an Extinction Rebellion demonstration.

The statue was daubed with the word “racist” in yellow spray paint while climate protesters occupied Parliament Square despite hundreds of police officers being stationed in the area.

The Metropolitan Police confirmed that one person had been arrested, but questions were raised as to how the statue was able to be defaced for the second time in three months.

There are also questions over whether any of the protesters on Thursday were the same ones who blockaded the print plants, because of the 51 people charged in relation to the action, 49 were released on bail conditions which stipulated that they must not attend Extinction Rebellion protests for a week.

Sir Mike Penning, the former policing and justice minister was among those to condemn the attack, calling on the police to take “more robust action” on protesters.

"Parliament Square is one of the most visual and visited places in the world, there are more cameras than almost anywhere else and they still get away with it. I am sure the police will say they will go back later and pick up the perpetrators.

"They need to stop it there and then and take more robust action immediately. That is what the public expects from them,” Mr Penning said.

"I don't blame the frontline officers. I blame their managers who are telling them what to do and in this case it goes up to the Met Commissioner."

Police need to strike a balance between “respecting the rights of people intent on criminal damage and actually nicking them because they're doing criminal damage,” Bob Seely, the Conservative MP for the Isle of Wight said.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan described the vandalism as "appalling" adding that the statue would be cleaned as soon as possible.

The towering figure of Britain’s wartime Prime Minister was boarded up in June after being graffitied during a Black Lives Matter protest. Priti Patel, the Home Secretary described the defacement as “thoroughly unacceptable”.

It came less than a week after an angry mob blockaded the printing plants of several national newspapers, more climate activists caused chaos in Westminster, chaining themselves to railings and blocking traffic.

A spokesperson for The Met said: “Ahead of any large scale demonstration we always engage with partners regarding crime prevention advice, it is not the responsibility of the Met to take steps to cover up buildings, statues or monuments.

“Officers on patrol in Parliament Square took immediate action following the vandalism of the Winston Churchill station, making a swift arrest on suspicion of criminal damage.”