Tories chased, spat at and assaulted on way into Birmingham conference, says party chairman
Tory delegates have been attacked, spat at and chased on their way into the party conference in Birmingham, a senior minister has claimed.
Jake Berry MP, the Conservative Party chairman, has written to West Midlands police chiefs raising "serious concerns" over measures taken to protect people attending the event at the ICC.
The letter was sent ahead of an incident on Monday afternoon which saw police lock down the ICC over a potential security alert.
He said delegates had faced "intimidation and threats of violence" from protesters outside the venue, while some had been "spat at, chased and in some cases physically assaulted".
Mr Berry has called for the concerns to be addressed as a matter of urgency.
Lichfield MP Michael Fabricant and Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg are among those to have been subjected to abuse on their way into the venue.
In a letter to West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster, co-signed by Tory party chief executive Darren Mott, Mr Berry said: "We are writing to raise our serious concerns at the measures taken to protect delegates attending the 2022 Conservative Party conference.
"Over the course of the last 24 hours, we have received reports from some of our delegates that they have faced intimidation and threats of violence from some outside the venue.
"It of course goes without saying that we fully support the rights of all peaceful protesters, but with reports of delegates being spat at, chased and in some cases physically assaulted as they enter and exit the Conference centre – this is clearly not acceptable.
"We would like to ensure these concerns are addressed in advance of our delegates returning tomorrow morning.
"We would both be happy to discuss these matters with your team to ensure that our delegates can safely come and go, without infringing the rights of peaceful protesters.
"We would also like to place on record our than to the dedicated police officers and police staff of the West Midlands for all their work to date and for the warm welcome we have received from the great people of Birmingham."
In response, Labour PCC Mr Foster said it was "clearly not acceptable" for delegates to be subjected to the behaviour highlighted in the letter.
He said that no offences had been recorded and that "the issues raised have not reached the criminal threshold" and no arrests had been made.
Mr Foster also complained that the conference resulted in an "unwelcome" net cost of £500,000 to West Midlands Police – a figure which could rise substantially due to a changed policy on rest days.
A number of protests have taken place outside the ICC since the conference started over the weekend.
