Steve Bray’s fundraiser soars to more than £200k after police confiscated his speakers

Protester Steve Bray – perhaps more commonly known as ‘Stop Brexit Steve’ given his recent tendency to holler the phrase at Parliament through a giant megaphone – appears to be doing rather well after police confiscated his amplifiers earlier this week.

On Tuesday, when the controversial Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act came into force and banned acts which cause “serious annoyance” to members of the public, Mr Bray saw his speakers removed by Metropolitan Police officers.

He went on to tell the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire that the UK is “heading down a path of fascism”, and was heard calling police officers “fascist mouthpieces” when they seized his equipment.

According to Mr Bray, he has been “summonsed” with the case going to court, and said he “may need some legal help”.

Fortunately for him, the crowdfunder listed on his Twitter profile has seen a surge in support, with the protester tellingThe Telegraph’s Christopher Hope he “raised £80,000 overnight” on Wednesday.

The fundraiser, which was launched back in July 2020, now stands at over £203,500, with donations coming in every couple of seconds.

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One individual chipped in £20 and wrote: “We must always fight against those who wishes [sic] to oppress and harm our human rights. Thank you Steve and you are not alone.”

“I’ll defend anyone’s right to peaceful protest. Doesn’t matter who, or what they’re protesting about. Best of luck,” added another.

A third added: “Whether you agree or disagree with Steve this is an assault on all our freedoms by an utterly disgraceful UK government.”

Oh, and a day after police seized the amplifiers, he was back in the same spot with some new speakers, blasting music at Parliament once more.

His actions have also rattled several Tory MPs, with former Commons leader Andrea Leadsom claiming a few speakers means Mr Bray’s actions somehow constitute “violent protest”.

Meanwhile Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office minister James Cleverly believes Mr Bray is “paid from anonymous sources to harass MPs”.

Given just how many are putting their names to donations on Mr Bray’s official fundraising page, this is far from the case.

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