Two key questions surround Labour’s new attack on protest rights

The Labour government pushed through a further clampdown on protest on 14 January, though it hasn’t passed in the House of Lords yet. And while we should keep up the pressure to oppose this, we should also ask two key questions:

• Is this crackdown to protect dodgy private corporations?
• Is it laying a pathway for greater militarisation in the UK?

Whether either of these are the case or something else is at play, we deserve answers.

Clampdown on protest in service of private industry?

Following Labour’s latest repressive move, the Canary spoke to Protect the Wild founder Rob Pownall. And he insisted that it’s:

a clear issue around civil liberties and freedom of protest and freedom of speech

The amendment to the highly controversial Public Order Act would treat private animal-testing facilities as “key national infrastructure”. In turn, this means protests against such facilities would face harsher repression. And he asked:

If the government can classify what is a private industry – the animal-testing industry – … in the same bracket as… things that are needed for the continued running of the country, then where does the line get drawn?

And that’s a very important question. Because if the government is happy to boost police powers to protect corporate interests here, where will that stop?

Ahead of the amendment, the animal-testing industry was really struggling under pressure from protesters. Private company MBR Acres, for example, is:

Britain’s biggest beagle puppy factory supplying toxicology testing laboratories

Since 2021, the longest “non-stop protest camp” in history has sought the closure of the 8-acre factory, which breeds around 2,000 puppies every year for cruel, unnecessary testing. And in 2025, it seemed like protesters’ efforts were succeeding, with the company losing energy suppliers and collaborators. As Pownall said, the owners were:

only a few weeks away from having to shut their doors

Then, in a January victory for protesters, a jury found Animal Rising supporters “not guilty of burglary” following their rescue of puppies from MBR Acres. The government’s amendment passed just hours later, Pownall said, effectively making it illegal for that “exact form of protest” to happen again.

Whether Labour’s intentions were to protect MBR Acres or not, this repressive move is certainly a boost for the company.

What about the key RAF base next to MBR Acres?

It’s also worth noting, however, that MBR Acres is right next to RAF Wyton, which:

provides intelligence support to UK Armed Forces on operations globally.

This base has probably handled the data from the UK’s secretive, regular, and highly controversial flights over Gaza during Israel’s genocide.

The BBC, meanwhile, has reported that RAF Wyton could become “as well-known as GCHQ” (the UK’s third intelligence agency, alongside MI5 and MI6). With a potential boost of 1,000 more jobs by 2032, the Ministry of Defence wants it to be:

at the forefront of defence intelligence and innovation

The local Tory MP, meanwhile, has expressed excitement about the prospect of the increase in military spending centring on the area. He hopes this could “draw big companies in“.

The true reasons for the government’s latest crackdown on protest rights are unclear.

Whatever the reason, we need to firmly oppose this amendment

Labour’s new amendment was one it had “stood against” in opposition, Pownall said. And just weeks earlier, the party had shared its “roadmap to ending animal testing”. So pushing forward with this repressive move now seems either like more hypocrisy from Keir Starmer’s government, or like a mask for something else.

But whatever Labour’s reasons, it’s clear that ordinary people should oppose this crackdown on our protest rights. And with the amendment now sitting with the House of Lords, Pownall stressed:

At this point, it’s about getting as much media attention and publicity on this issue as possible, and to demonstrate the huge public backlash against this proposal.

The government had previously sought to push these new powers through on the sly. But significant public pressure forced them to delay it, and brought even more focus onto the issue.

Now, as Pownall insisted, we need to keep talking about this repressive move, and put pressure on the Lords to defeat it. Because no good can come from this. And who knows how much further Starmer’s regime will go if it gets the chance?

Featured image via the Canary