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Kevin Mills, leader of Dover District Council, criticized the police response to a highly coordinated protest that brought the Port of Dover to a standstill for several hours. Speaking to the BBC, Mills said authorities were unprepared for the demonstration, which saw hundreds of masked men blocking roads and chanting slogans such as “stop the boats,” resulting in major traffic delays and disrupting access to the port. He remarked that the protesters “caught several agencies on the hoof” upon their arrival on Saturday.
While Kent Police has yet to issue a formal statement, cabinet minister Jonathan Reynolds insisted that officers responded promptly to the situation. Nevertheless, Mills expressed disappointment with the perceived slow actions of law enforcement in maintaining road access and traffic flow, noting that “the protesters knew what they were doing, I’m not sure the police did know what was going to happen.” He acknowledged the strain on police resources but stressed the need for a thorough review, as “no-one actually knew” what was unfolding during the morning of the protest.
Reynolds, addressing the issue on BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, condemned the protest’s intimidatory nature despite supporting peaceful demonstrations as a fundamental right. He sympathized with residents of Dover who faced disruption, stating, “I feel sorry for the people around Dover and the people disrupted by that.” The demonstration lasted from 7:00 to approximately 11:30 BST, described by Kent Police as a “spontaneous protest” with no arrests made. Meanwhile, complaints were reported from Preston, where protesters apparently parked vehicles prior to heading into Dover, a detail supported by Conservative council group leader Chris Vinson, who said the men had “loaded into rental vans” before traveling to the area.
The organizer behind the protest is believed to be the Patriot Platform network, according to the anti-hate organization Hope Not Hate, which reported the group had been meeting since July and united various anti-migrant factions nationwide. Protesters generally avoided media interaction, with one expressing the sentiment “send them back” and another repeating “stop the boats.” Far-right activists Tommy Robinson and Danny Thomas publicly supported the protest on social media, with Thomas praising the demonstrators for their “discipline” and adherence to a plan, claiming that local people were thankful for their actions. However, Reynolds dismissed figures like Robinson as exploiting issues for personal gain, stating, “They want to exploit their online following and take money from the people willing to follow them online.” Meanwhile, Rupert Lowe, leader of the Restore Britain party and MP for Great Yarmouth, voiced support for the peaceful protests but noted that wearing balaclavas, while “undesirable,” was understandable given the current societal climate
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