Metropolitan Police have raided a Quaker Meeting House in Euston for the second time this year, seizing equipment allegedly intended for a climate protest by Just Stop Oil activists.
The raid marks an escalation in police targeting of the religious community's premises, following a similar operation at another London Quaker Meeting House in March. Officers removed items from the Euston building, which Quakers in Britain confirmed were believed connected to planned climate demonstrations.
The religious organisation has expressed "deep concern" over the police tactics, questioning whether the raids are proportionate or necessary. Quakers emphasised their meeting houses' historical role as places of sanctuary and community support, and defended their commitment to peaceful protest and freedom of assembly.
"We have a long history of supporting peace and social justice movements," the organisation said, warning that current policing approaches risk undermining fundamental democratic values.
The raids come amid heightened police powers under the Public Order Act 2023, which allows officers to prevent protests deemed likely to cause significant disruption. Civil liberties groups have warned the legislation could disproportionately target legitimate protest and stifle dissent.
The Metropolitan Police have not provided detailed justification for the latest raid beyond general references to preventing public order offences. The repeated targeting of Quaker premises suggests a deliberate strategy to disrupt logistical networks supporting climate activists, even when hosted by religious organisations.
The controversy highlights growing tensions over the balance between maintaining public order and protecting the right to protest, with community and religious groups increasingly caught in the crossfire of the government's anti-protest crackdown.