Evicted St Paul’s protesters threaten to cause more trouble

Occupy London pledged that it was “only the beginning” following the removal of the last protesters early yesterday after four and a half months camped outside the landmark cathedral.

The group said plans were “already afoot” of “some ambition” in response to the eviction.

“All will be revealed in time. May is one of our favourite months,” it said on the Occupy London website and added: “The relationships forged during these strange and beautiful four and a half months still have much further to run. This is only the beginning.”

City of London police, supported by the Metropolitan Police, said 23 arrests were made during the “largely peaceful” eviction as bailiffs from City of London Corporation removed tents and equipment from outside St Paul’s.

The action was taken five days after Occupy London was refused permission by the Court of Appeal to challenge orders evicting protesters.

Stuart Fraser, policy chairman of the City of London Corporation, said: “It is regrettable that it had to come to the need for removal but the High Court judgment speaks for itself. The site has now been cleared and the area is undergoing a deep clean.”

Granting orders for possession and injunctions against Occupy London at the High Court last month, Mr Justice Lindblom said the proposed action by the City of London Corporation – which it pledged not to enforce pending appeal – was “entirely lawful and justified”, as well as necessary and proportionate.

The appeal judges, headed by Master of the Rolls Lord Neuberger, said the protesters had raised no arguable case.

The corporation called on campers to remove their tents voluntarily.

Although some remained on site when police arrived, many began dismantling the equipment before bailiffs moved in.

Gary Sherborne, 50, said: “We haven’t got any choice and I’d rather protect the tent for another day without it being destroyed by the bailiffs.”

Meanwhile, a group of protesters remained defiant, waving flags and banging tambourines on top of a makeshift wooden structure.

The platform was eventually dismantled by bailiffs after police in riot gear surrounded it. Campaigners were also cleared from the steps of the cathedral.

An Occupy London spokesman said its School of Ideas in a disused school building in Islington, north London, had also been evicted.

Kai Wargalla, a 27-year-old student from Germany who camped at St Paul’s since the occupation began on October 15, said: “Our community is being attacked here, but we’re going to reconvene and come back stronger.”

She said many of the campers from St Paul’s planned to go to one of the group’s other sites. Ms Wargalla was one of a number of “legal observers” who were monitoring the eviction process on behalf of the campaigners.

She accused the police of causing unnecessary tension and added: “It wasn’t that violent today but the violence we did see came from the police and the bailiffs.”

The protest forced a week-long closure of the cathedral in late October, the first time it had been closed since the Second World War, after officials received a report by health and safety officials.

St Paul’s later issued a statement saying: “The police did not ask for permission from us regarding any aspect of the action taken last night, but we were clear that we would not stand in the way of the legal process or prevent the police from taking the steps they needed to deal with the situation in an orderly and peaceful manner.”