Angry protestors tell Liverpool councillors they should be 'hanged'

Angry protestors screamed councillors “are going to hang” in a dramatic outburst at Liverpool Town Hall.

As elected members of Liverpool Council met to discuss items on adult health and social care, protestors shouted how they were a “disgrace” and would be “tried for crime of genocide and treason.” It is the latest in a number of demonstrations to be held outside the civic buildings in the past 12 months.

City Safe staff had to remove the protestors from the town hall, with the doors bolted and shut to the public afterward. The angry demonstration occurred as another committee met in another room where members discussed councillors’ safety.

Despite the rain, more than a dozen people initially gathered outside the Town Hall just before 5pm with yellow placards seen at previous demonstrations last summer. A large white banner was tied to railings outside reading “no more lies.”

The meeting was initially delayed as members of the public were admitted but asked to leave any items outside of the chamber. As discussion progressed on how the city was developing its public health annual report, one woman shouted: “We would like to know what earth you’re all living in? How dare you sit there and call yourselves councillors?”

Another person said: “You’re all criminals” while one shouted: “You work for us.” One person said the cllrs would be “tried for crimes of genocide and treason” and said “people are fully awake.” 

As one was led out they shouted, “shame on you” and “you’re going to hang for committing treason.”

Committee chair, Cllr Nathalie Nicholas, adjourned the meeting as councillors were sent to an office in the town hall as the members of the public were removed via a side door. The main doors of the town hall were closed and gates shut on the Water Street entrance.

Cllr Alan Gibbons said: “I asked the protestors what specific questions they had for us on health and social care. They asked me about homelessness and issues around vaccination.

“Sadly, one gentleman kept shouting about hanging. I couldn’t get him to calm down and tell me what grievance he had and what he wanted us to address.”

Some members of the committee also told the LDRS of their anxiety around the protestors.

It is thought some of the protestors had initially gathered regarding £4m being handed back to the government after a plan for a homeless shelter fell through more than two years ago. As the dramatic scenes unfolded, a second committee meeting was being held in the hall unaware of what was going on.

Cllr Richard Kemp, deputy Lord Mayor and member of the standards and ethics committee, posted on social media: “Ironically while all this was kicking off the Standards Committee which was meeting upstairs was unaware of it. One of the things that we discussed was security for councillors given the amount to be spent on security for MPs.”

A number of those seen at the Town Hall tonight have been present at other demonstrations last year. In September, among the dozens in a noisy protest was former Liverpool FC player Rickie Lambert, who said members of Liverpool Council will be removed “if you continue to ignore your people.”

This was over a widely debunked conspiracy theory involving 15 minute cities which many oppose. There are no such plans existing in Liverpool.