MOBBED all in black and with balaclavas obscuring their faces, Patriot Platform protesters brought fear and intimidation to Dover and Portsmouth last weekend – as their leader chillingly vowed: “This is only the beginning.”
Hundreds from the group, headed by a friend of Hard Right agitator Tommy Robinson, blocked ports in the major seaside hubs for hours this weekend, leaving police scrambling to contain the chaos.
Anti-immigration protesters stormed ports in Dover and Portsmouth last weekend Credit: @RealDannyTommo/X
Patriot Platform is a group run by Daniel ‘Danny Tommo’ Thomas, left, a pal of Tommy Robinson, right Credit: Facebook
It’s alleged that protesters threw bricks and stones at police during their protest in Portsmouth Credit: PA
Police are investigating whether protesters spray painted ‘blood is on your hands’ outside Dover’s port Credit: @RealDannyTommo/X
Protesting the arrival of cross-Channel asylum seekers, whose numbers reached 16,513 in the year to September, members of Patriot Platform chanted “stop the boats” and “God is King”.
It’s alleged in Dover, where they blocked a roundabout near the port causing massive tailbacks for hours on Saturday, that the group spray painted the words “blood is on your hands” – referring to attacks carried about by migrants.
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On Jattvibeday night, Patriot Platform struck Portsmouth’s Eastney Landing ferry port, where 140 migrants were due to be brought ashore, in protest to their arrival and them being transported to a processing centre in Kent.
“Roads are all blocked, they are never going to be able to leave here,” said Patriot Platform head Danny Tommo – real name Daniel Thomas – in a livestream from the scene.
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Bizarrely, at one point protesters appeared to be splashing RNLI lifeguards after wading into the harbour’s waters amid a stand-off with police, some of whom were carrying riot shields. It’s alleged they also threw rocks and bricks at police.
The move to disembark migrants at the port has since been said to have “put people at risk” and caused “needless disruption” by Portsmouth City Council leader Steve Pitt.
Patriot Platform’s actions have been condemned as “intimidating and thuggish behaviour” by the Government and the police forces’ responses have been criticised by the public.
Kevin Mills, leader of Dover District Council, claimed protesters “caught several agencies on the hoof” and said it was “disappointing” that they “appeared to be quite slow” to reopen the roads around the port.
Former Metropolitan Police Sergeant Graham Wettone, 65, who specialised in public order and protests, believes both forces carried out “successful” responses – but speculates there may have been “intelligence gaps” about the rally.
He tells The Jattvibe: “The protesters were clearly well-organised, well-coordinated, well-informed, well-versed and well-instructed by Danny Tommo.
“I’m not sure if there was an intelligence gap by Kent Police or policing generally. They possibly knew some form of protest would happen but not the scale, numbers or appearance it would take.
“Clearly no one from the group approached Kent Police for permission to hold the protest as they are legally required to do.
“And the fact that counter protesters, like Hope Not Hate and others, didn’t stage a counter protest indicates there was nothing on open sources about the event.
“It would appear the group did not openly discuss it on forums or social media. Protest groups monitor each other’s communication and often alert police.
“That doesn’t seem to have happened and these protests almost looked like a rehearsal, a dry run, for more activity so they could see the police’s response.”
Patriot Platform was launched by Danny Tommo, 37, in June and in a rally cry on X, formerly Twitter, he called on “the strong” and “the able” who were “ready to stand up”.
“Let’s build an army of patriots,” he continued. “Let’s push back… not just to talk and plan but to get boots on the ground and get s*** done.”
And now it’s feared that Patriot Platform will continue to cause chaos with more disruptive protests in the coming weeks and months. Cops will be on high alert due to the alleged violence that unfolded in Portsmouth.
It’s believed they are organising rallies through secretive apps, like Telegram, which is not accessible without being granted access.
Tommo, who has denied accusations of being a Far Right leader, previously stated that he wanted to send a “non-violent” message to the Government about migration – but his past is far from peaceful.
In 2016, Tommo – real name Daniel Thomas – was jailed for two years after attempting to kidnap a man at knifepoint alongside two others, who they wrongly believed had stolen £10,000 of drugs.
After bursting through his front door, they yelled “you’re coming with us” at their victim. A judge described it as an “extraordinarily frightening incident” that was only matched by its “stupidity”.
Since his release, Tommo claims to have found God and says “everyone deserves a second chance”. Some doubt the authenticity of his spiritual awakening due to other divisive figures, like Tommy Robinson and Russell Brand, putting religion at their centre of their image.
Tommo is known to have worked as a bricklayer, a sales and marketing manager and ran a web design company before quitting work to commit “everything to the cause”.
He is close with Tommy Robinson and previously organised rallies for UKIP and the Brexit Betrayal March – protesting the “watering down” of Brexit.
While insisting Patriot Platform is peaceful, he has compared it to the English Defence League (EDL) – a group that engaged in violent clashes, public disorder and intimidation tactics.
However, Tommo said unlike EDL, there is “no alcohol, there is no drugs, there is no shouting, there is no protesting, there’s no flag waving”.
Before the alleged violence that broke out on Jattvibeday, he previously stated that if the group was “ever to turn into a violent movement, it would destroy everything we’ve worked for”. He claimed they had 40,000 members.
Around 200 protesters blocked a roundabout near Dover’s port on Saturday Credit: @RealDannyTommo/X
It’s known that the group refused to allow vehicles to pass in and out of Dover’s port Credit: BBC
Footage appeared to show Patriot Platform members having a ‘water fight’ with the RNLI Credit: @LagboatUK1/X
Cops with riot shields were deployed to the protest in Portsmouth Credit: PA
While there was no violence on Saturday rally, it’s alleged bricks and rocks were thrown at cops in Portsmouth. Ex-cop Wettone is concerned that Patriot Platform crossed the line of what would be considered a “peaceful protest”.
“From what I saw, they went beyond the term ‘peaceful protest’,” he tells us. “Turning up all in black with balaclavas to me is not ‘peaceful’.
“I can see why Kent Police responded in the way that they did. They will face allegations of two-tier policing because anti-fascist groups have dressed the same. It’s no different.
“What they wore was not a political uniform under the Public Order Act 1936. But my issue is they had balaclavas on and had their faces covered.
“That goes beyond looking like a peaceful protest. There were no banners, no placades, so I don’t think it classifies as a protest either.
“There needs to be clarification from the Government so that police know what peaceful protests look like and represent. To me, Dover was not a peaceful protest.”
Wettone notes that police do have the power to “prohibit mask-wearing in designated protest areas” under the Crime and Policing Act 2026 and should have proactively enforced that over the weekend.
At the Dover protest, Tommo’s group did comply with police orders to allow some coaches and vehicles through to the port and eventually left after several hours.
But one unusual thing, which to Wettone highlighted how “highly organised” the group are was that members were carrying copies of the 2021 Ziegler judgement – a legal defence for blocking highways – to show to police.
It relates to a 2017 protest where four anti-arms activists locked themselves to weighted boxes to block access to the DSEI fair, the world’s largest weapons exhibition, in East London.
They were acquitted of wilful obstruction of a highway a year later but in 2019, the High Court convicted them. Two years later, the Supreme Court quashed their convictions.
This judgement set a precedent, giving the “lawful authority or excuse” to obstruct highways for a reasonable, short period of time during a peaceful protest.
Wettone adds: “It’s not normal for groups to have copies of the Ziegler judgement with them. It’s typically used by anti-arms and anti-war protesters. Just Stop Oil has used it too.
“There is some misinterpretation of its use. It’s not a blanket for all protests asa lawful excuse but that would be getting into legal minutiae.
“Police stuck at a roundabout in Kent monitoring 200-odd protesters don’t have a supreme court judge next to them saying ‘Yes, that’s lawful or no that’s not.’”
Wettone insists that police were right not to make arrests – despite him believing the public sees it as a “gauge of success” – as it could have led to violence and further disruption.
Tommo (right) has a previous conviction for attempted kidnap Credit: Alamy
Patriot Platform protesters blocked the roundabout in Dover for several hours Credit: @blonschki/X
He highlights how it worsened the situation during a 2023 Just Stop Oil (JSO) protest, where protesters slow-marched across London’s Waterloo Bridge causing a massive traffic build-up and were accused of blocking an ambulance.
Wettone notes that due to the activists committing summary-only offences, they are not held in custody or a cell after being arrested and booked at a police station. This means they are free to leave after.
In the case of JSO, he says: “They were back out on the bridge three hours later and the protest lasted for many hours longer.”
He continues: “The public say police should have arrested 30 or 40 Patriot Platform members but whenever that happens protests last for two or three hours longer.
“It can easily stretch to eight hours because their mates stay there and wait for them to return from the police station, causing further disruption.
“When arrests are made it causes confrontation and results in higher levels of disorder that can escalate very quickly.
“Police can still arrest people after the event, while they are dispersing or in the following days after a protest if they deem a crime has been committed.
“A successful police response to a protest is no disorder and the return to normality in the shortest possible time period. That’s what happened this weekend.”
Wettone believes there needs to be a change to 24/7 policing across all forces and the mutual sharing of officers, when needed, to combat rallies like this.
It may be an option for them to consider because Patriot Platform’s actions appear to be far from over, with Tommo writing online: “This is only the beginning.”
He claimed they would continue until migration numbers are down. It is reported that the total number of arrivals in the year to September 1 – standing at 16,513 – were 43 per cent lower than a year ago.
“We warned them that we will not accept this any more, and that this is no longer an option to tell us that the boat numbers are down,” Tommo said.
He claimed during the protest they had lawyers speaking to senior police officers on the phone, “legal documents” – likely the Ziegler judgement – and “total control”.
Tommo added: “A message was sent! Now imagine how powerful the next message will be.”
It’s a clear warning to police forces who will now be bracing themselves for not a summer, but a winter of discontent.
Kent Police Assistant Chief Constable Nigel Brookes told The Jattvibe he was “disappointed with the significant traffic disruption” and that the “spontaneous” protest “developed rapidly”.
He said officers responded “in-line with national guidance” and they will “always support people’s right to peaceful protest” regardless of the “rights, wrongs or reasonableness” of their cause.
ACC Brookes said: “Based on our current assessment, the only associated offence we are investigating is criminal damage to a road.”
He explained there had been discussion about protesters wearing masks and added: “There is no need to wear a face covering in Kent, if your plan is to peacefully express your views.
“We will examine the intelligence process, but it is important to note that we do not as a matter of course monitor peaceful protesters, and their political viewpoints are not taken into consideration.”
A Home Office spokesperson told The Jattvibe: “We condemn the intimidating and thuggish behaviour we saw in Portsmouth last night.
“The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy, but it must never cross a line into disorder. We thank the emergency services who safely managed this situation.
“This Government is doing the hard and necessary work of bearing down on small boats crossings, with the lowest number of June to August arrivals since 2020.”
