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MEPs in the UK House of Commons (2019)
Photo: MARK DUFFY / AP
Three days after the violent dissolution of a vigil for Sarah E., who was allegedly killed by a police officer, the British House of Commons in London voted in the second reading by a majority for the government's new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.
The opposition heavily criticized the procedure.
The bill has thus cleared its first hurdle in parliament.
Among other things, it stipulates that peaceful demonstrations may in future be restricted by the police to a greater extent than before if, for example, they "intimidate the public" or cause "serious discomfort" because of noise or other reasons.
Opposition MPs had criticized the law as an expression of the government's "penchant for authoritarianism".
Hundreds of people demonstrated against it on Monday evening in front of the Houses of Parliament in London.
The proposed law comes at a time when the police are heavily criticized for their hard work at the weekend vigil.
Officials had cracked down on the corona measures and arrested several people on Saturday evening at an unauthorized meeting in memory of the woman kidnapped on her way home in London.
The pictures of women who were violently led away and wrestled to the ground led to severe criticism of the police.
Interior Minister Priti Patel defended the bill on Monday.
"We have seen significant changes in protest tactics in recent years, with demonstrators exploiting loopholes in the law that have led to a disproportionate degree of disability," said the conservative politician.
She referred among other things to protests of the environmental movement Extinction Rebellion.
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svs / dpa