Policing protests in London will cost at least £10m this month, the Metropolitan Police have revealed ahead of a weekend of action, including a major rally in support of Palestine Action.
Deputy assistant commissioner Ade Adelekan has said the force has “no choice” but to arrest protesters who defy terror laws by showing support for the banned group.
Up to 1,000 people are expected to take part in a peaceful demonstration in Parliament Square on Saturday in support of the direct-action group holding signs saying: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”
It comes after more than 500 were arrested at a similar protest last month, forcing police to operate a street bail system as they handcuffed hundreds of protesters.
Mr Adelekan warned any attempt to overwhelm policing “absolutely will not work” as he said the forces have all the resources they need to carry out mass arrests if required.
“I’ll just make it absolutely clear to you, and I make no reservations about this, if anyone shows support for Palestine Action – an offense under the Terrorism Act – they will get arrested,” he said.
“There’s no doubt about that. We have the officer numbers, we have the custody capacity and all the resources to process as many people as is required.”
He revealed the force has access to contingency cells outside of London if needed.
Detective chief superintendent Helen Flanagan, head of operations for the Met’s counterterrorism command, urged those thinking of showing support for Palestine Action to “think again”.
“We will investigate and prosecute all we suspect of committing offences under Terrorism Act,” she said, adding that many of those arrested at previous demonstrations are now facing the “stark reality” of facing a potential terror conviction.
On Friday, the protest organisers Defend Our Juries said it had sent a letter to Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley ahead of the protest at 1pm today in Westminster, urging him to tell his officers not to arrest the protesters.
It said police forces in Edinburgh, Totnes, Derry and Kendall had all decided not to arrest sign-holders.
The letter said: “You do not need to endlessly repeat the embarrassing charade of arresting people who are acting peacefully and lawfully in front of the world’s press, bringing policing into disrepute.
“As the hundreds start to become thousands, maybe it’s time to put a cap on your losses and give your hardworking and overstretched men and women some well-deserved rest?”
Palestine Action was banned as a terror organisation in July after the group claimed responsibility for an action in which two Voyager planes were damaged at RAF Brize Norton in June.
It means showing support for the direct action group is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
The Home Office is set to appeal against the High Court ruling allowing Palestine Action’s co-founder Huda Ammori to proceed with a legal challenge against the government over the group’s ban.
Saturday’s protest comes after what the Met has described as a “particularly busy” summer of protests amid heightened tensions over the conflict in Gaza, the proscription of Palestine Action and the debate around the use of hotels to house asylum seekers.
A separate march by Palestine Coalition is due to start in central London at midday, while Sunday will see a National March Against Antisemitism in the capital.
The Met said they have used 62,829 officer shifts to police protests in the last three months alone, with a further 19,461 officer shifts anticipated in September.
A “conservative” estimate of the cost to the force is £10m this month, Mr Adelekan said.
