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Lizzie Dearden @lizziedearden
, 20 tweets, 7 min read Read on Twitter
If you are hearing about the 'yellow vests' who have been intimidating MPs, journalists and Remain protesters outside Parliament for the first time, here's a history of the group

It's mostly made up of Tommy Robinson supporters, ex-EDL, Britain First and Pegida UK supporters
Some 'yellow vest' protesters were heckling @OwenJones84 and other journalists outside Parliament early in December, before starting wearing the jackets that have become a symbol of sometimes violent anti-government protests in France

On 9 December, several protesters at the 'Brexit Betrayal' march led by Tommy Robinson and Ukip leader Gerard Batten wore yellow vests, including this charming fellow . Pic from @BlewettSam
After organising on Facebook, the first official 'Yellow Vests UK' protest was on 14 December, when they blocked several bridges in London - copying Extinction Rebellion's disruption tactics

The protests then became a pretty much daily feature in Westminster, seeing 'yellow vests' mainly station themselves by College Green and heckle journalists - particularly Sky's @KayBurley - MPs and pro-Remain protesters

And again
They love blocking roads almost as much as they love shouting at people
On 19 December, the 'yellow vests' hit headlines for the first time after following and heckling pro-Remain MP Anna Soubry. She is now among politicians calling for police to intervene

independent.co.uk/news/uk/politi…
Goddard, who claims not to be the group's leader, claims the group is non-violent but also enjoys telling police he will 'give them a war', calling MPs 'traitors' and making threats like this

The group has an anti-Muslim base, and have been spreading a conspiracy theory claiming that a drink-driver who killed three boys in London was a terrorist, and that the attack was covered up by authorities

On 21 December, they disrupted a court hearing

independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/…
The 'yellow vests' have also been targeting the media. On New Year's Eve they were at LBC Radio's headquarters in London, complaining over how they had been described by a presenter

Another key target is the Labour Party, which Goddard calls 'treacherous'. He angrily livestreamed trying to see an official without an appointment last week

The biggest protests so far came on Saturday, when the 'yellow vests' called a national day of action

Four arrests were made in London, where there were scuffles with police, and there were also demos in Manchester, Newcastle, Newport and elsewhere

independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-n…
Their numbers remain small, but publicity they are getting could drive a bigger turnout at upcoming protests

The biggest mystery is what they actually want. They are supposedly calling for a no-deal Brexit, but seem less concerned with the issue than far-right cause celebres
But make no mistake - they might be piggy-backing on Brexit but this is a far-right group and all of the main figures in it have history with anti-Islam groups

They are also driven by a series of anti-government and 'globalist' conspiracy theories
Goddard, a guy who calls himself Danny Tommo and other leading figures crowdfund their activities from supporters, being fans of both Tommy Robinson and his tactics

Hate is a lucrative business
independent.co.uk/news/uk/politi…
More than 60 MPs and the Speaker have written to police demanding action, but officers have no power to remove the group from outside the Houses of Parliament or any other public place unless they are committing a crime, or a specific court order is made

independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-n…
Both Facebook and PayPal have now deleted James Goddard's accounts. A serious blow to the organising and fundraising capabilities of the 'yellow vests'

independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-n…
An update on the 'yellow vests' plans for the weekend, and more on the history on James Goddard, who seemed quite happy with EU immigration laws when he moved to Spain

independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-n…
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More from @lizziedearden see all

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The far right “is not a working-class movement anymore”, a former neo-Nazi has said as groups capitalise on public concern over terrorism, grooming gangs and Brexit

A conscious shift in tactics by new image-conscious breed of extremists is paying off

ind.pn/2s1eiF2
While the BNP and EDL have melted away, the groups gaining traction are appealing to the public outside their traditional recruitment pool

Ethno-nationalists Generation Identity specifically target students and ask for rally attendees to be 'well-groomed'
Even Tommy Robinson has started wearing suits at publicity stunts and asked supporters not to drink at protests

As one former neo-Nazi put it, they have “wised up to the fact they need to be more respectable” to get support from the mainstream
Read 6 tweets
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Protesters in yellow vests on Westminster Bridge are a group of far-right Brexiteers led by a guy called James Goddard - a sort of wannabe Tommy Robinson who tries to fund his activities through PayPal
The same group went on to bother Tower Bridge - clearly inspired by Extinction Rebellion tactics to cause disruption

Another participant in the 'yellow vest' Brexit protest today was Tim Scott, who was a short-term leader of Pegida UK - started by Tommy Robinson and Anne Marie Waters

He's best-known for this memorable interview independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-n…
Read 4 tweets
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This seems like a good time to explain reporting restrictions and Contempt of Court.

The Contempt of Court Act 1981 covers several types of offences but is particularly important for governing how criminal proceedings are reported

legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/49/…
The whole aim of the act is to safeguard the judicial process and prevent a jury being "prejudiced" - swayed or affected by what they read or hear outside of court

If they are, people can be wrongly convicted/acquitted or trials have to be stopped and restarted
The law kicks in as soon as proceedings are "active", which happens when someone is arrested, a warrant is put put, charged or summoned to court

Before that happens it's a free for all, and you'll notice the number of articles on a case drop and details get cut
Read 13 tweets

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1/ Some additional thoughts about how dreadful and Trumpy the S*n's "journalism" is here - and what it means for Brexit going forward.
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There's one unnamed source.

No one is asked to comment, either from the opposition or trade unions, or employment law or policy experts.
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