London Riots: Almost Over.

As of 22:40 the violent protests against a rise in university tuition fees that have gripped London today are gradually coming to an end. I use the term riot because that is exactly what today has been. Normally I would try and gauge the level of protest by talking about the numbers who attended and the numbers who have been arrested. Today it seems more appropriate to talk about the number who have been hospitalised. So far this stands at 22 protesters and 9 police officers including one who got assaulted by his own horse.

Since my earlier post the stand off in Parliament Square continued with protesters attacking the Treasury building and the Supreme Court building both of which form part of the square. At around 19:20 protesters who had avoided containment in Parliament Square set off to the London shopping district of Oxford Street and Regent Street. There they began to attack shops that have been accused of avoiding tax, something that they have been conditioned to do since the Millbank Tower protest on November 10th. While they were there they came across a Royal limousine containing the Prince of Wales, Prince Charles and his wife, the Duchess of Cornwall. Obviously the car was surrounded and attacked with white paint being thrown over it and one (bullet proof) window cracked but the integrity of the vehicle remained and no-one was injured

Tonight even the police are questioning the wisdom of driving the heir to the British Crown into a riot in a clearly marked Royal limousine. Of course by tomorrow even they'll have worked out that it was a set up to provoke discussion about the dispersal/containment debate over policing tactics with a view to supporting the controversial containment tactics. Also it grabs headlines across the globe and stops people talking about the cavalry charge of mounted police officer earlier in the day.