§ Mr. Dudley Williamsasked the Secretary of State for Air whether he has completed inquiries into incidents at North Pickenham on 6th and 7th December; and whether he will make a statement.
Mr. WardYes. I have now had a full report on these incidents.
It is clear that the demonstrators were cautioned by civil and Royal Air Force police not to enter Air Ministry property and warned that if they did so they were liable to be removed. The demonstrators ignored these warnings, entered the site, and attempted to bring work to a standstill. Some of them therefore had to be removed.
I am satisfied that the measures taken to deal with these demonstrations did not involve the use of unnecessary force, and I consider that the police behaved with tolerance and restraint in a difficult situation. Equally, I am now informed that while the demonstrators resisted being removed they offered no violent resistance: I am glad to make this clear.
There were a small number of minor injuries, due to conditions on the site, but, so far as I am aware, no serious injuries either to police or demonstrators.