The Met's attempts to remove Brian Haw from outside Parliament have reached new lows by playing on people's fear of terrorism.
The anti-war protester Brian Haw could be exploited by terrorists wanting to bomb Westminster, a court heard. Mr Haw's banners outside the Houses of Parliament could be used to conceal a device by extremists, Marylebone Magistrates' Court was told.
Well yes they could. But so could a backpack. Or a shopping trolley. Or a pizza box. Or a black cab. Or a bus. Or a briefcase. Or a large German Shepherd. Or a herd of school children. Or a car. This list could get quite long.
Are the Met going to ask that none of these things be allowed within spitting distance of Westminster too?
We doubt it.
As a compromise how about the Met stop wasting money on this case and funnel the cash into making Brian some weather proof signage built to their own specifications. That way they can ensure there's no terrorist friendly nooks and maybe finally fuck off and leave the man alone.
Photo take by nic0 in the Londonist Flickr stream
