Thread by @RCquaker

Here are 10 reasons why @BritishQuakers the #HouseOfLords needs to vote down part 3 of the #PoliceBill on Monday:

'Noisy' or 'disruptive' protests will be criminalised. Most protests annoy someone! And most protests are pretty noisy.
1/10

@BritishQuakers What constitutes 'noisy' hasn't been defined. Which means the police can define it according to their whim. If they think a protest is 'noisy' then it's noisy and will be illegal.
2/10

@BritishQuakers What constitutes 'disruptive' hasn't been defined either. So the Home Secretary gets to decide. So a government that thinks a protest is 'disruptive' can make it illegal, even (especially!) when the protest is directed at the government.
3/10

@BritishQuakers Protests in a large area around Parliament will be banned. Literally where a protest most needs to be heard.
4/10

@BritishQuakers The new 'Protest Banning Orders' can be imposed on people who have been linked to disruption at previous protests, EVEN IF not convicted of any crimes. Breach the order: 51 weeks in prison. Utterly disproportionate.
5/10

@BritishQuakers Protesters protest because they're passionate about changing the world. Usually they protest because powerful people are blocking that change. That's not a good reason to lock someone up.
6/10

@BritishQuakers Freedom of assembly is a human right. Denying people right to protest strikes at the heart of that. The UN Special Rapporteur for human rights agrees. So much for Global Britain.
7/10

8. Extra new suspicion-less #StopAndSearch powers give police too much power. We already know that Stop & Search disproportionately targets people of colour.
8/10

The latest amendments haven't been discussed in the #HouseOfCommons at all. That alone is enough reason for them not to pass in the #HouseOfLords. Whatever happened to democratic debate?
9/10

If you deny people the right to protest, you suppress dissent. It's a slippery slope to authoritarianism from there.
10/10

It's too late to defeat Part 4 of the Bill, but be aware that it will contain dire consequences for #GypsyRomaTraveller people and their traditional way of life. That's racist, and should be a national disgrace.
11/10 (sorry)

If you happen to be a voting member of the #HouseOfLords and want to know more, @libertyhq has an excellent briefing doc here: libertyhumanrights.org.uk/wp-content/upl…

Helpful thread giving more info about all this:

https://twitter.com/QuakerDissent/status/1483042591528693761