Anti-lockdown protest: Thousands march again in central London

This week's anti-lockdown protest was the fourth to take place in the capital since the start of the pandemic. London has recently moved into Tier 2 restrictions, which bans people from socialising indoors with people they do not live with.

Photos and videos posted on social media showed demonstrators marching through the West End towards Trafalgar Square, after gathering near Speaker’s Corner in Hyde Park earlier in the afternoon.

Under laws introduced to slow the spread of infection, people in England are not allowed to gather in groups of more than six. There are exemptions for political protests, but only if organisers follow guidelines.

With anger brewing at the unfairness of local lockdowns and increasing disagreement over the effectiveness of restrictions and the science of the pandemic, people travelled from across the country to attend the capital’s fourth mass protest against the government’s coronavirus measures.

Saturday’s demonstration gathered at Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park for a march through central London, a change in approach after police used force to break up the last two anti-lockdown demonstrations in Trafalgar Square.