EDL March/Road closure (11th December)

EDL
POLICE have agreed the route of the EDL (English Defence League) protest on December 11 in Peterborough.

The decision was made in consultation with Peterborough City Council, local community representatives, local business representatives and follows negotiations with the EDL.
The EDL march will start at 1pm on London Road, close to Peterborough United Football Club and proceed over Town Bridge, past Bridge Street Police Station and then congregate
on Lower Bridge Street Peterborough Magistrates’ Court.

Temporary road closures will be applied for on London Road and Town Bridge while the protest takes place.

Superintendent Paul Fullwood said: “We have worked hard to ensure we identified a location which would balance the concerns of local people and businesses in Peterborough, while
responding to the EDL’s requests.

“We decided on this location because it provided a central location for the EDL while allowing the majority of businesses in the city to continue as usual.“We understand that for businesses in the Rivergate area there will be an impact during the protest and we are working with those business owners, alongside the council, to minimise this and look at alternative ways of drawing in business over the weekend.

“At this stage we cannot confirm numbers likely to attend but hope to be able to provide some indication as negotiations between the police and EDL continue. As and when we have
further information we will share this with the public through our various established links with the community.

“As public authorities, the Constabulary and Peterborough City Council have a duty to support and facilitate people’s right to peaceful protest. Key to that process is ensuring we deal with
any concerns people may have. “

A multi-agency community group, involving police and the city council, has been set up to ensure the community are kept updated on information about the process and deal with any
community concerns. Members of the public with questions can email the group at macg@cambs.pnn.police to receive feedback and further information.

Paul Phillipson, Executive Director of Operations, said: “The Local Authority are fully supporting the police on insuring that this demonstration causes the minimum disruption to
the people of Peterborough.

“We are working closely with our schools, youth groups, youth workers and educational contacts across the city to ensure that our youth communities understand and are fully aware
of what is taking place. This is to ensure that there are no misunderstanding and the messages are clear and unbiased in the same way that we have presented to yourselves.

“There is considerable work taking place with the Muslim Community Reference Group and the briefing of more than 70 attendees has already taken place and included an equivalent
leader from Leicester so that we can all learn from their experience. We are working with all faith groups across the city and are looking to present two events to celebrate the cohesion
peace and harmony that the city enjoys both prior to the march and directly after the march, further details of these will be released once we have concluded.

“We have already briefed our taxi community and will continue to maintain close contact in order to support them during this time. We will also be looking to place additional events
within the city on the following day to mitigate any business impact and will work closely with the businesses in order to identify what is the best support that we can offer. “




(C) Park Farm Neighbourhood Watch Peterborough UK Tel: 01733 345581 Broadcasters direct call ISDN 'down the line' 01733 555319 ISDN Codecs G722 & APT All Press Enquiries Julian Bray 01733 345581