3 days ago
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Police forces will be given new powers to manage protests near sites of worship, the Home Office has said.
The government said the powers were in response to a series of "intimidating protests" near synagogues and mosques in recent months.
The new measures will make it easier for police to impose conditions on protest - including on the route and timing of a march - that might disrupt worshippers attempting to visit religious sites.
In addition, a new law that bans people from climbing on war memorials will be extended to cover the National Holocaust Memorial, which is set to be built in Westminster in the coming years.
The new powers, which are being introduced as amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, protects synagogues, mosques, churches and all other religious sites.
Among other things, current legislation allows the police to impose conditions on a protest if they believe the "purpose of those organising the protest is the intimidation of others", the Home Office said.
The new legislation will allow police to impose conditions on a protest "specifically if they have a reasonable belief that the protest may result in the intimidation of those seeking to access places of worship".
The Home Office said the new rules would give police "total clarity on how and when they can protect religious sites".
The updated laws come partly in response to recent demonstrations near synagogues that have "caused the cancellation of events" and dissuaded congregants from travelling to worship, the Home Office said.
The government also cited the targeting of mosques during the violent disorder that broke out last summer as a reason for introducing the amendments.
Anti-Semitic hate crimes have increased by 113% in the last year, and anti-Muslim hate crime has risen by 13%, according to police figures quoted by the Home Office.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said that while "the right to protest is a cornerstone of our democracy", that right "does not include the right to intimidate or infringe on the fundamental freedoms of others."
The government said police will still have to make a "proportionality assessment", which balances the "right to freedom of expression with the right for others to go about their daily lives free from intimidation and serious disruption", before imposing conditions on protects.
The government said it is also providing "up to £50m" to protect faith communities in the next year.
