Hundreds of people, many of them local, gathered in Gosport on Tuesday night following social media rumours that authorities planned to land migrants in the Hampshire town. Masked followers of anti-migrant activist Daniel Thomas were cheered by the crowd.
Senior Reform UK figures, including Hampshire MP and former home secretary Suella Braverman, cheered on the gathering as a show of "people power". Far-right posters with slogans like "resistance" and "protecting our children's future" were seen on lampposts in Gosport's Falkland Gardens.
Police arrested six people on Tuesday night, with at least two identified as outsiders: a 19-year-old and a 36-year-old, both from Salisbury, detained on suspicion of aggravated trespass.
Home Office sources stated there was no plan to land migrants in Gosport. The small boat carrying 51 people ultimately docked in Dover, Kent, at approximately 12:30am on Wednesday after 33 hours at sea.