Nine people have been arrested as Tommy Robinson protesters hurled missiles at police officers, after 110,000 anti-migrant activists marched through central London today in what is thought to be the largest right-wing demonstration in British history.
The ‘Unite The Kingdom’ march, organised by anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim activist Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, met at Stamford Street near London’s Waterloo Bridge before making its way to the southern end of Whitehall.
A counter-protest organised by group Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) formed at the other end of Whitehall with 5,000 in attendance, according to official Met Police figures.
The Met Police said it had faced ‘significant aggression’ from violent Unite The Kingdom protesters who they say assaulted officers and peppered them with missiles.
Swathes of pro-Robinson demonstrators turned out bedecked in Union Jacks and England flags, with many bearing pictures of Charlie Kirk, the American conservative activist who was shot dead in Utah on Wednesday.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk criticised the Government for a ‘rapidly increasing erosion of Britain’ via a video call to the event in central London.
Musk claimed that a ‘dissolution of Parliament’ and ‘change of Government’ is needed in the UK.
The billionaire businessman, who formerly headed up the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the US, said: ‘I really think that there’s got to be a change of Government in Britain. You can’t – we don’t have another four years, or whenever the next election is, it’s too long.
‘Something’s got to be done. There’s got to be a dissolution of Parliament and a new vote held.’
When they finished their conversation, Robinson said: ‘Not only are we in the fight right now, but we’re on the advance thanks to free speech being fought for, for us, by Elon Musk.’
As violence broke out among Unite The Kingdom protesters, police officers faced ‘significant aggression’ and were seen struggling to keep activists from breaching their lines and gaining access to counter-protesters, who were all but surrounded.
Initially small scuffles between protesters and police broke out, with activists pushing and shoving, and officers seen drawing batons in response, before projectiles were thrown and officers assaulted.
The force struggled to contain the violence and by 4.30pm had had to send in urgent reinforcements to deal with Unite The Kingdom protesters, including mounted officers on horses.
The Met said its officers were ‘attacked with projectiles and have had to use force to prevent their cordon being breached’ after a group from Unite The Kingdom attempted to force their way through police lines towards counter protesters.
The force later added that ‘a number of officers have been assaulted’ and it was having to ‘intervene in multiple locations’ to stop Unite The Kingdom protesters from reaching ‘sterile areas’ and counter-activists.
Scuffles break out between protesters supporting Tommy Robinson’s Unite The Kingdom march and police in Westminster
Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, has been spotted amongst crowds as he joined the Unite the Kingdom march in central London
Overhead footage shared by the Met Police showed groups of protesters attempting to force their way through police barriers
The Met said its officers had been attacked, with footage showing them responding with riot shields
Just before 5pm the Met said it had made nine arrests. A spokesperson said: ‘The turnout for the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ protest was too big to fit into Whitehall.
‘Protesters left the route onto Victoria Embankment and sought to access Whitehall from multiple directions.
‘When officers moved in to stop them they faced unacceptable violence. They were assaulted with kicks and punches. Bottles, flares and other projectiles were thrown.
‘Nine arrests have been made so far for various offences, but many more people have been identified as committing offences. We will find them and they will face police action, even if it is not possible to do so today.
‘Officers are continuing to face aggression in multiple locations, in particular at the north of Whitehall as they work to create a safe exit route for those who have been taking part in the Stand Up To Racism protest.’
Previously the Met said protesters ‘attempted to enter the sterile area on Whitehall that is place to keep the two protests apart’, adding: ‘Officers were attacked with projectiles and have had to use force to avoid their cordon being breached.’
The force said it faced ‘significant aggression directed at officers by Unite the Kingdom protesters’, and had to rapidly deploy additional officers and extra police horses.
Met officers were seen detaining one man near to Scotland Yard’s headquarters.
The man, who was wearing a black blazer and had a Union flag wrapped around his waist, was escorted by several officers away from Whitehall Gardens on Victoria Embankment and down Horse Guards Avenue.
It came as activists attempted to cross police lines to disrupt the nearby March Against Fascism protest.
Speaking ahead of the rally Robinson, real name Yaxley-Lennon, told supporters the ‘revolution is on’ in a video posted to X where he claimed his Unite the Kingdom protest was the largest demonstration in British history.
The far-right activist told his followers that London was full of ‘patriots’ before saying ‘the spark has started, the revolution is on’.
Thousands of people have gathered in London today to attend the Unite The Kingdom march, organised by Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon
Robinson’s live stream on X has more than 800,000 views as some protesters chanted his name and yelled ‘Keir Starmer is a w***er’. In response, counter-protesters shouted: ‘Tommy Robinson is a w***er.’
Amongst the crowd are protesters who have flown thousands of miles, including visitors from the US and a man from New Zealand who said he had arrived in the UK with ‘about 100 of my warriors’ to take part in the march.
After crowds reached Whitehall, Laurence Fox told those gathered he was praying for Charlie Kirk and said a ‘sword’ should be taken to people shutting down free speech.
‘Our nation matters. This is our home, we have nowhere else to go,’ he shouted.
Tommy Robinson then claimed that the UK courts found the rights of undocumented migrants supersede those of the ‘local community’.
He said: ‘Last week, they took Epping community to court and they said in court that the rights of migrants, undocumented migrants that we know nothing about, supersede the rights of the local community.
‘They told the world that Somalians, Afghanis, Pakistanis, all of them, their rights supersede yours – The British public, the people that built this nation.’
He was referring to a Court of Appeal decision to overturn an injunction blocking asylum seekers being housed at The Bell Hotel in Epping, Es𝑠e𝑥.
He told the crowd: ‘The revolution has started. They managed to silence us for 20 years with labels.
‘Racist. Islamophobe. Far-right. They don’t work anymore. The dam has well and truly burst. The cat is out of the bag and there is no putting it back in. The silent majority will be silent no longer.’
Other speakers included New Zealand Christian fundamentalist Brian Tamaki, who told the crowd: ‘Christianity versus the rest. Islam, Hinduism, Bahai, Buddhism, whatever else you’re into — they’re all false. We gotta clean our countries up.
‘Ban any type of public expression in our Christian nation from other religions. Ban halal. Ban burqas. Ban mosques, temples, shrines. We don’t want those in our countries.’
Protesters wave Union Jack and St George’s England flags during the ‘Unite The Kingdom’ rally on Westminster Bride by the Houses of Parliament
A shirtless protester attends the Unite The Kingdom protest on Saturday while brandishing an England flag and a crucifix
Further figures at the rally included far-right politicians Eric Zemmour from France and Petr Bystron of Alternative for Germany (AfD), as well as controversial Canadian psychologist Jordan Peterson.
Commentator Katie Hopkins and TV personality Ant Middleton are also at the event.
Meanwhile opening the counter-rally speeches at Russell Square before marching on Whitehall, co-convener of the Stand Up To Racism protest said the Labour Government has been ‘trying to out-racist the racists all summer’.
Sabby Dhalu thanked the ‘very happy’ and ‘militant’ crowd of hundreds, before telling them: ‘We’ve got to acknowledge that the events over the summer – all of the far-right protests, all of the far-right uniting behind this toxic narrative, and Reform UK and Nigel Farage, along with Tory politicians like Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman encouraging the protesters, attending the protests in various parts of the country – has meant that we are going to see a very big Tommy Robinson demonstration today.’
She added: ‘Sadly that narrative has been conceded to by the Labour Government who have been trying to out-racist the racists all summer, which has just fed this toxic narrative and hatred and racism towards refugees.’
Ms Dhalu was followed by author, historian and child 𝑠e𝑥ual abuse survivor Louise Raw – the founder of Survivors Against Fascism – who claimed some far-right protesters who have spoken out against 𝑠e𝑥 attacks were offenders themselves.
‘We know the far-right do not stand with survivors, they create survivors’, she said, adding: ‘Tommy Robinson will not ever speak to you about them ever.’
As the Unite The Kingdom crowds grew, the Met Police told Stand Up to Racism protesters to stay on Whitehall as Robinson supporters had gathered on all of the adjacent roads, a speaker said.
Dozens of tributes have been spotted to Kirk following his death this week while speaking in Utah
Protesters make their way from Waterloo Station to join the Unite The Kingdom march
Some of the signs held aloft at the SUTR are titled ‘smash the far right’ and ‘refugees welcome’. Other materials displayed include a Union Jack with the words ‘Diverse Britain’ emblazoned across its front featuring LGBTQ colouring.
The march was led by hundreds of women, Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) said, including independent MP Diane Abbott.
Speaking to Sky News from Russell Square, Ms Abbott said: ‘We need to show that we are united.
‘They [Unite The Kingdom] are talking nonsense. It is a dangerous lie to try and say that men of colour are a threat to women. It is a dangeorus lie and we need to squash it.
‘My message to the government is they want to keep people safe and we need to be clear that these demonstrations around hotels are racist demonstrations.’
Samira Ali, national organiser for SUTR, said: ‘Our demonstration will be sending a message loud and clear: we are united against the far right threat. Women don’t need the far right to keep us safe.’
Back at the Unite The Kingdom rally, 13-year-old Courtney Wright, who earlier this year was forced to spend a morning in isolation after her school told her she could not wear her union flag dress or deliver a speech about being British for a planned Culture Day, spoke to the crowd.
After being introduced by Robinson as a ‘brave little British girl’, Courtney walked onto the main stage where she was received by rapturous applause and whistles.
Telling the crowd she was ‘so proud to stand here today’, she said: ‘Even though I’m only 13 I already know how lucky we are to live in this country. Britain is our home, it’s a place built on courage, sacrifice and freedom. Millions before us fought to protect it and it’s our duty to love it, respect it and keep it strong.
‘We may be young but we are the future and together, with pride in our hearts, we will always stand for our great nation.’
She then told the crowd she had been ‘silenced’ by her school, adding ‘my voice didn’t count’ before reading out the speech she had not been allowed to deliver to her classroom in July.
As she ended her speech, Robinson encouraged the crowd to give their praise, adding: ‘Her parents must be so bloody proud.’
A protestor rides a boat in the River Thames carrying the Union Jack flag in London on Saturday
A protester dressed as Richard the Lionheart attends the anti-migrant protest in Whitehall on Saturday
Activists take part in the March Against Fascism, organised by Stand Up To Racism (SUTR), in central London
Protesters at the Stand Up To Racism rally held placards reading ‘Refugees welcome’ and ‘Stop the far right’
Protesters wave Union Jack and St George’s England flags during the Unite The Kingdom rally on Westminster Bridge by the Houses of Parliament
An Irish tricolour was spotted amongst the crowds largely made up of Union flags and St George’s cross flags
Supporters of ‘Unite the Kingdom’ are pictured ahead of the protest march in central London
Anti-migrant protesters let off flares as they cross Westminster Bridge on their way to Whitehall
Signs reading ‘Eat the Gammons’ and ‘No Pasaran, F*** off Fascists’ are held at the SUTR event
Demonstrators chanted as they moved through the streets of central London
Thousands of people gathered in Stamford Street, London early on Saturday ahead of a march on Whitehall
A woman paints a St George’s Cross on a topless man’s face who appears to be wearing a lanyard beneath his jacket
Some demonstrators were spotted wearing ‘MEGA’ hats – standing for Make England Great Again
Supporters of ‘Unite the Kingdom’ protest march gather at King’s College in central London
The streets were filled with Union Jacks, St George’s Crosses and US flags on Saturday
Thousands of people gathered in Stamford Street, near Waterloo Bridge, before marching on Whitehall on Saturday
A woman smiles at the Unite the Kingdom march with her face painted in the style of the St George’s Cross
A man wearing a t-shirt reading ‘Stop Importing, Start Deporting’ gestures at the event
The Met is deploying 1,600 officers as Yaxley-Lennon supporters and opposing demonstrators, who are hosting the ‘March Against Fascism’, stage rival rallies.
The vast number in attendance for Unite The Kingdom today dwarfs the collective 33,000 protesters estimated to have joined three rallies organised by Tommy Robinson in London since July 2024, according to a Freedom of Information (FOI) Act request published by Met Police.
Saturday’s number also more than eclipses well-known far-right protests to have taken place in the last 100 years in London.
The Battle of Lewisham, on 13 August 1977, attracted just 500 members of the far-right National Front, who were met by 4,000 counter-demonstrators.
During the notable Battle of Cable Street, on October 4, 1936, some 5,000 far-right protesters assembled in east London – but they were met by up to 300,0000 counter-protesters.
The extra cost of policing today’s protest will likely cause a budgetary headache for Met Commissioner Mark Rowley, based on the FOI figures.
Met Police estimated that the three previous protests generated an additional spend of around £960,000 (July 27, 2024), £2.4million (October 26, 2024) and £1.7m (February 1, 2025) respectively.
Courtney Wright, 13, spoke at the Unite The Kingdom event after she was put in isolation to for wearing a Union Jack dress to school