Fresh wave of ‘death parties’ expected on day of funeral
Police and city councils braced for protests
AFRESH wave of protests and “death parties” are expected to take place across the UK on the day of Margaret Thatcher’s funeral. The announcement of the former Prime Minister’s death saw hundreds gathering in Glasgow, Liverpool and Brixton last Monday to join in “celebrations” organised on social media.
Glasgow City Council has now received a request to stage a rally to “Remember Thatcher’s Victims” on the evening of the funeral taking place at St Paul’s Cathedral in London on Wednesday.
More than 300 people have also signed up to a Facebook group called “Maggie’s Good Riddance” party, which plans to stage a protest outside St Paul’s by turning their backs as her coffin passes.
And hundreds are expected to attend a “Thatcher’s Dead” party being held in Liverpool on the same day as the ex- Prime Minister’s ceremonial funeral goes ahead with full military honours.
The funeral is expected to see the biggest security operation in London since last year’s Olympics.
Workers yesterday began putting up metal railings along the route, which will see the coffin travel by hearse from Parliament’s Chapel of St Mary Undercroft to the Church of St Clement Danes in the Strand.
The coffin will then be transferred to a gun carriage drawn by the King’s Troop Royal Artillery for the journey to St Paul’s Cathedral.
The Metropolitan Police have not yet said how many officers will be deployed, but thousands are expected to be on duty on the day of the funeral.
The Met has acknowledged the “potential for protest” but says it wants to ensure the wishes of those paying their respects will be upheld.
The request to hold the antiThatcher event in George Square in Glasgow on Wednesday is understood to have been made by an individual rather than an organisation.
A Facebook site has been set up to promote the rally, which has around 180 people saying they will attend.
It states: “People affected by Thatcher’s 11 years in power will gather to give public testimony on how her rule impacted on their lives and communities.
“A website will shortly open to allow all those who wish to submit their own personal testimony. These will be published online for all to read, and a selection of these will be read out at the rally.”
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: “We have received an initial email inquiry about the use of the Square on Wednesday, but no details have been provided to us so far.”
Councils in other major Scottish cities – including Edinburgh and Dundee – said they had not received any applications for events linked to Thatcher.
A spokesman for Aberdeen City Council said: “Our licensing team has not received any applications for street parties of this nature and we are unaware of any unofficial parties being planned.”
However in Edinburgh council bosses have taken the decision not to screen the funeral on a giant TV screen in the city’s Festival Square – which usually broadcasts public events – following police fears it could become a focal point for protesters.
Police Scotland has said all events will be policed appropriately.
The “death party” phenomenon has sparked criticism, with prime minister David Cameron describing some of the reaction to Thatcher’s death as “distasteful”.
Thatcher’s estate will make a contribution to the cost of the funeral – estimated to cost around £10 million – but it is not clear what proportion this will be. It is expected costs such as the planned military procession and the major security operation will fall to various government departments.
Downing Street has said it will not give details of the costs until after the funeral because of continuing planning.
There does not appear to be a significant number of Scots planning to travel to London on Wednesday to join protests or show their respects at the funeral. Rail, bus and flight operators said they had not seen any indications of a surge in bookings this week.