Manchester police accused of anti-fascist bias

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) used “disproportionate and unnecessary force” in policing anti-racist and antifascist protesters, according to monitoring groups.

The antifascists were there to oppose Britain First marching through Manchester on Saturday 18 April 2026. The new report from Netpol, the Network for Police Monitoring, found that the police consistently used “disproportionate and unnecessary force” against antifascist protesters.

The 42-page report, titled ‘One Day in Manchester: the policing of the antifascist counter-protest against a Britain First demonstration in Manchester, Saturday 18th April 2026‘, launched in Manchester on 7 July.

The policing of the Resist Britain First anti-racist demonstration on 18 April 2026 was a huge operation. Eight additional police forces provided mutual support, resulting in hundreds of police officers on the ground.

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‘Disproportionate and unnecessary force’

The report offers great detail into the excessive use of force by GMP. Not against fascists, Islamophobes and open racists on the streets, but against the people opposing their hateful march.

At least 150 counter-protestors sustained injuries. These include around 50 people who were PAVA sprayed. The Howard League for Penal Reform states that PAVA spray:

can be very painful … When PAVA is used, people often feel severe pain in their eyes, they cough a lot, find it hard to think straight and might feel a burning sensation on their skin.

Many people had their eye or face wear forcibly removed by GMP officers in order to deploy this painful spray. One person’s face mask was pulled off with such force that it ripped the cartilage of their ear.

GMP officers repeatedly and often indiscriminately attacked individuals who were not posing any imminent threat. The Canary has reviewed separate footage of horse-mounted police charging antifascist blocs.

Violent policing tactics recorded in the report included:

PAVA (pepper spray) attacks;
Strangulation and/or choking;
Sexualised violence and hair-pulling;
Preventing people from accessing medical treatment; and
Attacking people whilst accessing medical treatment.

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Manchester Police deliberately not wearing identification

Police officers are legally bound to display their officer numbers on shoulder-badges. Large numbers of officers did not display identification. This was captured on the ground by photographers.

The report describes officers acting with apparent impunity, seemingly confident that their conduct would not be challenged or investigated. This aligns with past GMP behaviour and that of other police forces.

Maya Fitchett, Research Coordinator at Netpol and author of the report said:

Netpol is documenting a crackdown on the right to protest happening almost every day, in different ways and all across the country. ‘One Day in Manchester’ offers one snapshot of this growing state of repression.

Police repeatedly and indiscriminately attacked individuals who were not posing any imminent threat, trampling all over their right to protest. The violence we saw was a direct result of high-level operational decisions by Greater Manchester Police. Our job is to ensure that these experiences are documented collectively, because patterns of repression are all too easily dismissed when we are forced to challenge them on an individual basis.

Zara, a member of Northern Police Monitoring Project said:

Greater Manchester Police must be held to account for their use of violence against protesters. This report contradicts Deputy Major Kate Green, who claims that the force used by police was proportionate, that there were only three instances of PAVA deployment, and that it was officers from other forces, not GMP, who had failed to wear or display compulsory identification. It’s one thing for GMP to deny what happened. It’s another for our elected representatives to help them do it.

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Manchester testimonies: ‘booted in the balls’

One antifascist protester told the Netpol researchers about excessive violence at the hands of GMP:

The police started pushing us more – at one point I heard an officer in a white cap shout ‘strike’ … The officers who were pushing us started throwing punches, shoving, swiping, grabbing and kicking at people. I myself think I was punched or kicked about 10-15 times.

Another protestor, present to counteract Britain First that day, told Netpol:

Later on in the day at St Peters, was when the worst of the police violence took place that I was witness to … an Inspector put his hands on either side of the cops in front of him and booted me in the balls.

Another shared the implication that the fascist forces they confronted that day were those in uniform:

When I got in I reflected that I’d gone into town and been attacked by a gang of people and pepper sprayed twice in the face, just for standing for half an hour whilst holding a banner to oppose proud fascists marching through our city – and this was facilitated and paid for by the council. I thought about the fact that I’d been beaten up and attacked whilst not actually seeing a single ‘fascist’.

Read more reporting from the Canary immediately after that horrific day in Manchester below:

Campaigners condemn GMP’s “despicable” “extreme violence” vs anti-fascist protesters

About the Northern Police Monitoring Project (NPMP): NPMP monitors and documents police conduct in the North of England. It supports those who experience police violence or misconduct and provides independent oversight of policing at public events.

NPMP are contactable at: [email protected]

About the Network For Police Monitoring: Netpol challenges police power and defends the right to protest. It provides resources, news, campaigns, and support for people who want to monitor the police and resist excessive force, intrusive surveillance, and disproportionate restrictions on civil liberties.