Quaker Meeting Hall raid: Was it legal under human rights law?

16th April 2025

What happened?

On 27 March 2025, Metropolitan Police officers raided the Quaker Meeting Hall in Westminster, London, during a gathering of the activist group Youth Demand. Reportedly, over 20 police officers some equipped with tasers forced entry into the building to arrest six women on suspicion of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance.[1]

The police have sought to justify the raid and the subsequent arrests by referring to the group's purported plans to 'shut down London using protest tactics such as (according to the police) swarming and blocking roads. (The police did not explain what they meant by swarming.)

The group Quakers in Britain condemned the raid as an aggressive violation of their place of worship