OFFICERS from Gwent Police were called to Bristol to assist in last night's Kill the Bill protests.

Fourteen people were arrested for offences including breaches of Covid-19 legislation and obstruction of a highway after gathering at College Green on Tuesday night.

It was the latest 'Kill the Bill' protest in Bristol against the UK Government’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which will see the police handed new powers to tackle demonstrations.

It came two days after a protest which descended into rioting in the city – leaving 21 officers injured, police vehicles set alight and a police station’s windows smashed.

Avon and Somerset Police said around 200 people gathered for the latest protest, which began at about 4pm on Tuesday.

Mutual aid from neighbouring forces, including Gwent Police, was requested to assist in dispersing the gathering after attempts to encourage people to leave were unsuccessful, a force spokesman said.

Public order officers from Avon and Somerset, British Transport Police, Devon and Cornwall, Dorset, Dyfed-Powys, Gloucestershire, Gwent and Wiltshire were deployed to move protesters on at 10pm.

Police dog units, horses, the police helicopter and a police drone unit were also involved in the operation.

Many protesters left the area but a “significant number” gathered on Deanery Road and refused to disperse, the force said.

Fourteen arrests were made, with one of those detained also arrested for offences connected to Sunday’s protest.

Avon and Somerset Chief Superintendent Claire Armes said tents and a sound system had been set up at College Green, making it “abundantly clear” that protesters were “intent on remaining” there on Tuesday.

She said: “After the scenes of violence witnessed in the city at the weekend, it was necessary to bring in additional resources from our neighbouring forces to ensure the protest was safely brought to a swift conclusion.

“Throughout the operation officers continued to urge protesters to move on – at no time were they contained – but there came a time when enforcement was necessary as gatherings are still not permitted.”

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The protests have left officers feeling "under siege", according to the national chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales.

John Apter said: "I really feel for my colleagues in Bristol.

"There is a sense that you really feel under siege. And for some, whatever they do is not enough and for others, it’s too much.

"This was on an evening where the vast majority of the country were remembering those many thousands of people who have been lost to this horrible virus, so it was not good scenes to see, and this was on the back of the most horrendous violence that we’d seen on Sunday evening.

"So my colleagues are battered and bruised, in some cases physically. We’ve got a number of officers who were injured on Sunday evening, some very seriously. This is completely unacceptable, completely unacceptable.”