Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has condemned Reform UK for criticising the policing of protests outside an asylum hotel in Epping, Essex. She said officers deserved public support for keeping the country safe.
Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, had called for the resignation of Essex Chief Constable Ben-Julian Harrington after police escorted anti-fascist protesters through a crowd of demonstrators. Farage claimed the force had given "the red carpet treatment" to "hard-left groups" and had been "caught red-handed helping to light the fuse that led to violence."
Cooper responded: "The police do a really important job across our country keeping people safe. It is really important frankly that people support our police rather than just attacking them continually." She noted that Reform had been "one day calling for chief constables to resign, the next it is attacking women police officers."
Harrington said Reform's claims were "categorically wrong" and that officers had organised a cordon around activists exercising their right to protest. Former Metropolitan Police chief superintendent Dal Babu said Farage's claims were false and urged him to correct the public record. "British values mean if a politician makes a mistake, they put their hand up and acknowledge it," Babu said.
Epping Forest District Council has voted unanimously for a non-binding motion calling for the immediate closure of the Bell hotel for asylum processing and the "managed closure" of the Phoenix hotel. Council leader Chris Whitbread said the Home Office had been "not overly cooperative" over safeguarding concerns.
Police have arrested 17 people in total over the protests, including an 18-year-old for breaching a ban on facial coverings. Activists from far-right groups such as Homeland and Patriotic Alternative have been involved, and two Reform councillors were present outside the hotel last week.
