On 24 May an anti-cuts group in Cambridge stormed the Cambridge Union debating society in protest against the presence of Tory Local Government Minister, Eric Pickles.
Earlier, a hundred activists from Cambridgeshire Against the Cuts picketed the entrances to the building. The Tory-led county council is making £160 million worth of cuts .
Rather than meet local people, Pickles chose to discuss his vision for local government with members of Cambridge University Conservative Association. This meeting was delayed and then disrupted as activists gained access to the building, banging drums and chanting slogans.
Reportedly private security guards hired by the Union were “out of control” and a police officer is alleged to have reassured bouncers that “all the force [they] used was reasonable”.
Several activists sustained injuries and a school student was dragged outside by the neck. So much for “civilised debate”.
