Eight fined after Birmingham anti-lockdown protest
Police have fined eight people after an anti-lockdown march in Birmingham city centre on Saturday.
About 150 people gathered for the protest in Victoria Square, despite an appeal from West Midlands Police to stay away. The force said it made nine arrests in total, serving all but one with a £200 fixed penalty notice. Officers had asked the demonstrators to move on, said a spokesperson, but "some did not listen". That led to the arrests and subsequent fining of three women aged 21, 41 and 58, and five men aged between 19 and 58. Police said a 20-year-old man from Leicester, arrested on suspicion of organising a large gathering in breach of Covid-19 restrictions, had been bailed. "Although under normal circumstances we accept and protect people's right to protest, under current legislation, attending a protest is not considered an exception to leaving your house and is unlawful," Ch Supt Kim Madill said on Saturday. The force initially said 11 people had been arrested but since confirmed the number was nine. It added that further to the demonstration proceedings, officers patrolling the city centre on Saturday issued 25 fixed penalty notices "to members of the public failing to follow the rules". Fines start at £200 in England, where national lockdown measures mean people must stay at home and can go out only for limited reasons such as food shopping, exercise, or work if they cannot do so from home. Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: newsonline.westmidlands@bbc.co.uk Related Internet Links West Midlands Police