Police Shut Down Conservative Conference To "Guarantee Safety"

Police in Brussels have stormed a right-wing conference attended by Nigel Farage and Suella Braverman after orders for the event to be shut down.

Local authorities ordered the controversial National Conservatism (NatCon) Conference to be closed to “guarantee public safety”.

Ms Braverman, the former home secretary, and Mr Farage, the former Ukip leader, were among the political names advertised to speak at the event on Tuesday alongside right-wing Hungarian autocrat Viktor Orban.

Officers arrived after the event began at the Claridge venue in central Brussels to tell organisers the event would be shut down. According to a report on social media, police arrived while Mr Farage was addressing the event, giving attendees 15 minutes to leave the venue. However, officers did not appear to force the event to shut down and speeches continued.

Police have now said they will not let anyone else into the venue and people can leave and not re-enter.

Emir Kir, mayor of the area where the conference was held, said: “I issued an order from the mayor to ban the ‘National Conservatism Conference’ event to guarantee public safety.

“In Etterbeek, Brussels City and Saint-Josse, the far-right is not welcome.”

Conference organisers said they were launching a legal challenge to Mr Kir’s order, adding: “There is no public disturbance and no grounds to shut down a gathering of politicians, intellectuals, journalists, students, civic leaders, and concerned citizens.

“The police entered the…   venue on our invitation, saw the proceedings and the press corps, and quickly withdrew. Is it possible they witnessed how peaceful the event is?”

“Would you believe that Brussels appears to have got even worse in the four years since I’ve been there.

“We’ve now had not one but two venues cancel us holding this conference. Apparently the socialist mayor of Brussels doesn’t think this meeting should take place. Antifa and other organisations threatening to protest.

“I mean talk about cancel culture, these are political parties that are going to come top of the poll in at least nine European countries when we get the results through on June 10 of this year. So on my way back to the ghastly Brussels, cancel culture alive and well.”