Peers denied access to Parliament

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As thousands of protestors began to gather in Parliament Square today, peers were discussing how the recent demos in Westminster had restricted their access to the House.

Peers were irritated by the inconvenience posed by demonstrations and questioned whether it was a breach of the constitution that MPs and peers should be prevented from speaking or voting in Parliament.

One very indignant Lord told of how during the last student protest he had been refused access to the building because the police had been ordered only to let in MPs.

This was "quite funny, but quite serious", he said.

And another peer called for "a little bit more understanding from the police and politeness to help us into the House".

But Lord Wallace of Saltaire only irritated them further by telling them they may have "unreasonable" expectations about the ease at which they could come and go from the building at all times.

"Police have to balance democratic right to protest with the question of maintaining access to Parliament," he said.

And just as police were ringing the Palace of Westminster to protect it from angry students, the Lib Dem deputy leader of the Lords said British police would not keep order around Parliament in the same way the "Chinese government maintained it in Tiananmen Square".

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