Around 300 protesters gathered outside a police station in Basingstoke on Thursday evening (September 24) following the arrest of political activist Daniel Thomas, known as "Danny Tommo". The 37-year-old was detained on suspicion of criminal damage and recklessly endangering someone's life.
Protest outside Basingstoke police station
The demonstration began around 6.30pm with roughly 50 people carrying Union flags, but quickly grew to hundreds by 8.30pm. Protesters, largely dressed in black with a few wearing face coverings, chanted "free DT" and "we want our Danny back" as dozens of police officers lined up outside the entrance to monitor the crowd. They briefly blocked the road before peacefully moving aside to allow traffic to pass.
The gathering was triggered by social media calls following the arrest of Mr Thomas, who uploaded footage to YouTube appearing to show officers detaining him. The arrest follows an incident where Mr Thomas - a key ally of Tommy Robinson who has recently orchestrated anti-migrant protests along the south coast - was filmed slashing a dinghy in the English Channel while a rescue crew member was still on board.
Channel crossings tensions
The protest comes amidst heightened tensions over Channel crossings. Home Office figures revealed 781 migrants arrived in the UK on Wednesday across 10 boats - the highest single-day total this year, averaging 78 people per boat - bringing 2026's total to 18,565.
Responding to two uncontrolled landings from the Channel in two days, Education Secretary Lucy Powell acknowledged the situation was "not acceptable" and "a concern", but insisted there is an "improving picture". Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Tuesday morning, Ms Powell defended the Government's record, stating: "You can't stop everything all of the time."
Government defends record
She stressed that small boat arrivals are down 42% compared to the same point last year, pointing to an "urgent review" ordered by the Home Secretary alongside ongoing work with French authorities and border security to "suck the oxygen" out of human trafficking networks. Appearing later on Good Morning Britain, Ms Powell pushed back after being pressed on her comments, arguing her words were being "taken completely out of context".
"We are clamping down on small boat crossings every single day," she insisted. "It's not an easy thing to do to just turn on a switch, turn off a switch overnight. We have to constantly evolve."
