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Anti-Brexit campaigners have gathered for an emergency protest after Boris Johnson prorogued Parliament.
Crowds demonstrated in Parliament Square on Wednesday evening, hours after the Queen approved the Prime Minister’s request to suspend Parliament.
Activists were also set to gather in Manchester, Cambridge, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Durham in opposition to the plans.
The event was organised by campaign group Another Europe is Possible, who said on Facebook: “Boris Johnson is trying to shut down our democracy to deliver on his Brexit agenda.
“This is disgraceful, but we can’t just rely on the courts or parliamentary process to save the day. We all have a duty to stand up and be counted.
“Join us tonight from 5.30pm on College Green by the George V statue to stand up for democracy and fight against Johnson’s coup. Bring and invite everyone.”
They added that more protests will follow across the country on Saturday.
The Commons will now be closed from the second week of September until October 14, when there will be a Queen’s Speech to open a new session of Parliament.
The move from the PM has sparked outrage and opposition leaders have written to the monarch in protest.
While Commons Speaker John Bercow said the move was a “constitutional outrage” designed to stop Parliament debating Brexit.
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said in a letter to the monarch on Wednesday he “protested in the strongest possible terms on behalf of my party”.
He added: “I believe all the other opposition parties are going to join in with this.”
The Prime Minister called it “completely untrue” to suggest that Brexit was the reason for his decision.
He has insisted he needs a Queen’s Speech to set out a “very exciting agenda” of domestic policy.
“There will be ample time on both sides of that crucial October 17 summit, ample time in Parliament for MPs to debate the EU, to debate Brexit, and all the other issues,” Mr Johnson said
