The UK has blocked seven people from entering the country ahead of a far-right rally in central London, in a move that Prime Minister Keir Starmer said was intended to keep “agitators” out of Britain and prevent extremists from speaking at the event. The decision raises the political temperature around a march already viewed by police as a potential public-order flashpoint.
According to the report, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood withdrew permission for the seven would-be attendees after they had been granted electronic travel authorisation. Among those named were Joey Mannarino, a US-based commentator, and Valentina Gomez, a Maga influencer. The government said their presence would not be conducive to the public good. The identities of the other five banned people were not made public.
The rally is the Unite the Kingdom event organised by Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon. Starmer framed the issue as part of a wider struggle over the country’s values, saying extremists would be blocked from coming to Britain to speak at the nationalist march. Downing Street also backed the decision, saying people who threaten communities and spread racism have no place on UK streets.
The numbers matter here. The source said about 100,000 people attended the event last year, making it one of the largest far-right rallies in British history. It also noted that Elon Musk addressed the earlier rally remotely and was condemned by Downing Street for inflammatory language. Those references help explain why the current government is so sensitive to the optics and scale of the May 16 march.
The banned individuals are not just random names on a list. Mannarino has been accused of misogyny and has spoken at Britain First events. Gomez previously attended a Unite the Kingdom rally and used highly inflammatory language about Muslims. The government’s move therefore appears aimed not only at crowd control but at limiting the participation of speakers whose past comments could intensify hostility.
Police are reviewing the rally alongside a Nakba Day event expected around the same time, with Met commissioner Mark Rowley expressing concern about the scale of the protests. That overlap increases the risk that the weekend becomes not one protest but several, with competing claims on public space and heightened strain on policing.
The ban suggests the government is prepared to use immigration and border powers as a preventive tool in domestic order disputes. Whether that approach reduces risk or simply sharpens the political fight will become clearer as the rally date approaches.
