A Downing Street spokeswoman has said protests in Peckham, south London, on Thursday and in Margate, Kent last week which aimed to prevent illegal immigrants being moved to the Bibby Stockholm barge in Dorset were “unacceptable.”
The Metropolitan Police said 45 people were arrested after officers were assaulted while trying to stop the protesters obstructing a coach that was attempting to pick up the illegal immigrants from a Best Western hotel in Peckham.
A large crowd of people, many with their faces covered, surrounded the coach and sat down in the road in an attempt to prevent the transfer taking place.
Dozens of police officers were sent to the scene and footage emerged of jostling with the mob although there appeared to be no serious violence.
The protesters could be heard chanting, “No borders, no nations, stop deportations.”
It appeared the tyre on one of the coaches had also been slashed.
The demonstrations came a week after protesters in Margate forced the Home Office to abandon plans to move a separate group of illegal immigrants to the Bibby Stockholm barge.
But the Downing Street spokeswoman said, “Clearly this disruption and disorder was completely unacceptable and it is unacceptable for Home Office staff to be prevented from carrying out their work.”
“We have always acted to ensure that police have powers that they need to manage protest and tackle disorder. They have our full support in using those powers and upholding the law,” she added.
The Met’s Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said in a statement, “It saddens me greatly to say that a number of officers have been assaulted in the course of their duty following an incident in Peckham today where they sought to uphold the law.”
“A number of officers have reported being assaulted. Thankfully I’m glad that none of those are seriously hurt,” he added.
The Home Office has not confirmed if it will try again or if it has abandoned the transfer of people from Peckham to Dorset.
But Home Secretary James Cleverly said: “We will continue to remove those with no right to be here, despite continued efforts by the Labour Party and a coalition of disparate student groups to stop us.
“No amount of chanting, drum banging, or tyre-slashing by a noisy few will prevent us doing what is necessary to deliver the firm but fair approach that the British people expect,” he added.
His comments came as it emerged on Wednesday that a record number of illegal immigrants have crossed the English Channel this year.
The Home Office said 711 people crossed the Channel in 14 boats on Wednesday, bringing the running total for the year to 8,278.
Last year 29,437 illegal immigrants arrived in the UK, down from a record 45,774 arrivals in 2022.
Since the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act became law last week, 1,611 illegal immigrants have made the journey in 32 boats.
The prime minister’s official spokesman said, “That is exactly why we need to get flights off the ground to Rwanda to provide the effective deterrent such that people know if they arrive here illegally they won’t be able to stay here.”
The shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said, “For all the government’s fanfare, we know the unaffordable and unworkable Rwanda plan won’t fix this chaos.”
“It is costing half a billion pounds and will only cover a few hundred people a year, less than half of those who arrived on a single day this week,” he added.
The National Crime Agency has said a third man, a Sudanese national, has been charged with an immigration offence after five illegal immigrants died trying to cross the Channel last week.
