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Various politicians have taken to the airwaves to proclaim their “sympathy with the aims” of the Extinction Rebellion (XR) protests while expressing some reservations that the methods might

be “counterproductive”. There are various problems with the response. The first one is the aims of XR are quite appalling. An investigation for the think tank, Policy Exchange, by Richard

Walton, a former counter-terror chief, has exposed XR as an extremist revolutionary group. XR wishes to destroy democracy and free enterprise. Its leaders wish to exploit the issue of the

environment as “the best chance we have of bringing down capitalism” and adds that people “might die” in the process of “bringing down Governments”. Certainly, it might be able to attract

the endorsement from a few attention-seeking celebrities – the type of people Lenin regarded as “useful idiots”. But the reality is that we are dealing with a thoroughly pernicious outfit.

Even on the specific point about the environment, their reasoning is flawed. The technology and innovation of capitalism offer far better ecological outcomes than those provided by socialist

regimes. That was demonstrated by the terrible pollution during the Soviet era. However, XR, like the watermelon, is green on the outside but red inside. While they talk about green issues

they are not in the least interested in practical solutions – only in “smashing the system”: they eat at McDonald’s, block bus lanes, and have disrupted the Docklands Light Railway – even

though it is an exceptionally eco-friendly method of public transport. In a free society, the right to peaceful protest should be maintained. Communists, fascists, anarchists – all should be

protected by the rule of law which they wish to destroy. That should be allowed, even if the rest of us have to pay for the policing and put up with some limited inconvenience as marchers

go past on a route that has been arranged in the proper manner. What is altogether a different matter is law breaking. We have seen criminal damage, invasion of private property and

deliberate disruption of roads and bridges. Traffic has been jammed up. Many have had difficulty getting to work. Buildings have been vandalised. Westminster Bridge has been blocked –

causing delays getting patients to St Thomas Hospital. Smithfield Market has been invaded causing traders to lose money. While there have been 600 arrests the response from the police has

been far too passive. Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, has given a complete lack of leadership. The Mayor has not supported law breaking, but nor has he given the robust condemnation that

such antics warrant. Douglas Murray notes that it was the same in April: “As bridges and major thoroughfares were shut down by XR protesters – bringing misery to ordinary members of the

public – the police again seemed to think their role was to be mere observers. Or party-goers. The protesters managed to shut down the whole area around Oxford Circus, costing millions of

pounds in lost business on one of Britain’s busiest shopping streets.  And what did the police do? A number of them were caught on camera dancing in a ‘rave’ with the protesters. At Waterloo

Bridge, an officer was seen on a skateboard. It was as if the constabulary wanted to be loved. No care for the thousands of Londoners whose business had been damaged.” No lessons seem to

have been learnt. Protestors were able to get away with spraying red paint at The Treasury (and, due to their incompetence, the road) in Whitehall. The police were there but did nothing

about it. The Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, his fellow Labour MP Clive Lewis and Green Party MP Caroline Lucas have expressed support for the protestors. A Labour councillor Skeena

Rathor has taken to the airwaves to champion them. Jenny Chapman, another Labour MP, appeared on the BBC’s Politics Live and shrugged off concerns about disruption saying “there will always

be disruption”. By contrast, Baroness Boothroyd said that she had taken part in demonstrations when younger, but added: “In those days the police were in control of me as a demonstrator. Now

it seems to me that the demonstrators are in control of the police.” The police should be maintaining public order. While the operational details are a matter for them, if their failure is

so staggering that central London is reduced to gridlock, that is unacceptable. If Cressida Dick, Metropolitan Police Commissioner, isn’t able to manage this then she must be replaced by

someone who is. There is little prospect of that happening under the current Mayor. So the political context does matter. Labour politicians, with their indulgent response, show just how

much the Labour Party has changed. There would always be a fringe who would speak up for groups like XR. But now it is the typical reaction of a Labour MP, not just the Corbynistas. The

distinction between lawful protest and vandalism has become blurred in the minds of many of our elected representatives that are sent to pass laws. There is a class aspect to this. The

protesters are typically middle class. Marxist students or lecturers, perhaps revolutionary school teachers, encouraging their pupils to skip school and come along. Amid the hardcore

communists are the usual smattering of those favouring alternative lifestyles – yoga, veganism, interpretative dancers and so on. George Orwell lamented: “One sometimes gets the impression

that the mere words ‘Socialism’ and ‘Communism’ draw towards them with magnetic force every fruit-juice drinker, nudist, sandal-wearer, sex-maniac, Quaker, ‘Nature Cure’ quack, pacifist, and

feminist in England.” The victims of the disruption have been the workers. It is the low paid, those on fixed hours contracts who will have lost out. Those who don’t get paid if they don’t

make it in – and who can’t afford not to get paid. For some time, Labour’s support among the working class has been falling. This has been balanced by a growth of support among the middle

class – especially the young and those employed in the public sector. The more that Labour MPs take to the airwaves to praise the XR demonstrators, the more alienated the traditional Labour

voters will feel. A work ethic and respect for the law are values that have become an anathema to the Labour Party. Instead, the priority is to placate the zealots of each passing fad – even

when the motives of those behind it can be pretty dark. We will see how that positioning works out for Labour at the forthcoming general election.