May blanket ban a bizarre overreaction

Just as it looked as if Theresa May was about to do the right thing over the EDL march on Tower Hamlets, the Home Secretary decided to issue a blanket ban on all marches across five London boroughs for 30 days.

The whole point for those of us advocating a ban in the EDL was that there was a specific threat of violence associated with this extremist view. This new draconian measure suggests the police and government are suspicious of all protest. At what point do these boroughs become “march-safe” again?

While I accept that these are particularly difficult times for the Met in the aftermath of the riots, I can’t accept that all street protest should be off limits.

Would I support a march in protest at the ban? Yes, I probably would.