Britain's top cop defends arrest of OAP priest, 83, at banned Palestine Action protest — ‘law has no age limit'
Retired priest the Reverend Sue Parfitt was held on Saturday, the day the group was banned under terror laws.
2
2
Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley told BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: 'The law doesn't have an age limit, whether you're 18 or 80.
"If you're supporting proscribed groups, then the law is going to be enforced.'
Rev Parfitt appeared to be showing placards in support of Palestine Action at the Parliament Square demo.
In total, 29 people were arrested.
All have been bailed pending further enquiries.
Palestine Action was banned after vandalising aircraft at RAF Brize Norton on June 20.
prison.
Yesterday Pink Floyd's Roger Waters, 81, faced calls to be prosecuted for labelling Palestine Action a 'great organisation' in a video.
Waters, 81, also praised rapper Bob Vylan - who led chants of 'death to the IDF' at the Glastonbury festival.
The Campaign Against Antisemitism vowed to bring a private prosecution if the rocker was not charged.
The Campaign Against Antisemitism said it would seek to bring a private prosecution if he was not charged.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
30 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Labour opens door to new Rachel Reeves tax raid as minister hints that middle-class earners will bear the brunt
Labour opened the door to a tax raid on middle-class workers yesterday, with one minister saying only those on 'modest incomes' would be spared. The party looks set to launch a fresh tax grab this autumn, having refused to rule out extending stealth taxes or a levy on wealth. Yesterday Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander again failed to deny that Labour is looking to hike taxes, but said the Government would be guided by 'fairness'. She told Sky News that Cabinet ministers did not 'directly' talk about the idea of a wealth tax during an away day at the Prime Minister's Chequers country estate on Friday. But she added: 'I think your viewers would be surprised if we didn't recognise that, at the Budget, the Chancellor will need to look at the [Office for Budget Responsibility] forecast that is given to her, and will make decisions in line with the fiscal rules that she has set out. 'We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people. We have stuck to that.' Pressed on whether there would be tax rises this autumn, she refused to speculate but said: 'When it comes to taxation, fairness is going to be our guiding principle.' Huge rise in jobseekers The number of people looking for work has seen the biggest increase since the pandemic as employers scarred by tax rises step up redundancies. A poll of recruitment firms showed an 'accelerated decline' in activity – evidence that Labour's £25 billion National Insurance raid, combined with global political turbulence including Donald Trump's trade war and conflict in the Middle East, is taking its toll on growth. The figures from accountants KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) come after it was revealed last week that the economy shrank by 0.1 per cent in May, the second month of decline. Labour's general election manifesto promised not to increase taxes on 'working people', including national insurance, income tax or VAT, but ministers have struggled to define what a 'working person' is ever since. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has refused to rule out tax rises at the Budget since the Government was forced into a humiliating U-turn on welfare reforms that would have saved £5 billion. Fiscal watchdog the OBR last week warned that the UK's state finances are on an 'unsustainable' path due to a raft of public spending promises the Government 'cannot afford' in the longer term. Meanwhile, economists have warned that Ms Reeves' fiscal headroom could be eroded by unexpected economic turns. She is under pressure from Labour MPs, unions and senior figures to impose a wealth tax in order to balance the books. She could also increase business rates for department stores and supermarkets in a bid to raise £1.7billion, the Telegraph reported. Ms Reeves will tomorrow unveil plans for a Thatcher-style 'Big Bang' in the City by slashing red tape. In her Mansion House speech, she will pledge to reduce excessive regulation to make the UK 'the best place in the world to do business'.
Daily Mail
34 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
UK to strike migrant return deal with Iraq in latest bid to stop small boats and send more asylum seekers back
Yvette Cooper is set to strike a migrant returns deal with Iraq which would enable the UK to send more failed asylum seekers back. The Home Secretary is said to be in the 'final stages' of agreeing the pact to speed up cooperation between London and Baghdad. Ministers are under pressure to get a grip of the migrant crisis with 2025 on course to be a record year for small-boat crossings. More than 21,000 people have already made the perilous journey across the Channel, and Iraqi Kurds now dominate the people smuggling networks. Ms Cooper struck a deal with Iraq at the end of last year to tackle the gangs, including greater intelligence sharing and more law enforcement operations. Since then, the National Crime Agency has been working with the Kurdish authorities and says it has succeeded in targeting criminals operating in places where they thought they were 'untouchable'. But Ms Cooper hopes to strike an enhanced deal by the end of the summer to speed up cooperation between the UK and Iraq, enabling migrants to be detained and deported more quickly, The Sunday Times reported. Meanwhile, it emerged that the Government is looking at digital ID cards for migrants, so they can show if they have the right to live and work in the UK. Sir Keir Starmer will this week discuss border security with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Writing in the Sunday Express, Sir Keir said Mr Merz's visit to the UK will include talks on 'what more we can do together to prosecute criminal networks and prevent people smuggling to the UK'. According to the Home Office, 353 people crossed the English Channel by small-boats on Friday, just a day after the Prime Minister signed a deal with French president Emmanuel Macron aimed at deterring migrants from making the dangerous crossing. Under the terms, the UK will be able to send migrants back to France for the first time in exchange for asylum seekers with links to Britain. The so-called one in, one out deal is due to begin in weeks on a pilot basis, but needs final legal verification from the EU.
The Sun
42 minutes ago
- The Sun
Boy, 15, tragically drowns in Glasgow river as body pulled from water on hottest day of the year
A TEENAGER has died after he tragically drowned in a Glasgow river. Cops, paramedics and firefighters were all scrambled after reports of a 15-year-old boy in the River Kelvin last night. 3 3 A major rescue operation was launched on Kelvindale Road near the city's Maryhill. The emergency services, including water rescue support teams, were parked up on the busy road beside the River Kelvin as the incident unfolded on Saturday. Police officers were seen standing guard at a path beside the road leading onto the National Cycle Network. Locals reported seeing a police helicopter circling overhead. Tragically, a body was found in the river around 11.30pm. Police say a probe into the tragedy is currently ongoing but the death is not being treated as suspicious. A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Around 6.40pm on Saturday, 12 July, 2025, a search and rescue operation was launched following a report of a 15-year-old male in the River Kelvin, near Maryhill Road, Glasgow. 'Emergency services attended and around 11.30pm the body of a male was recovered from the water. "Enquiries are ongoing, however, the death is not being treated as suspicious." It comes as thousands of sunseekers flocked to beaches and parks to soak up scorching heatwave temperatures across the country. Woman dies after tragic fall at busy Scots beauty spot in front of 'distraught' crowd Elsewhere, we told how a woman has died after falling at a waterfall popular with swimmers and sunbathers near Glasgow. The victim, 63, was fatally injured as families flocked to the beauty spot in the Campsie Glen on the hottest day of the year. Police, fire engines and an ambulance were sent to the area where a hiker was hospitalised after plunging 25ft last summer. An onlooker told The Scottish Sun: 'There was a lot of people crying at the scene. The police and ambulance service are there. I think a specialist climbing unit had also been there earlier. It's quite a hilly and rocky area. It's easy to fall over the side.' Police sealed off a nearby car park with blue tape and were stopping drivers from entering after the accident around 12.35pm. The woman was treated by paramedics but could not be saved.
