Security lapses shock British lawmakers

LONDON -- In the second major security breach in London this week, five fox hunting enthusiasts stormed onto the floor of the House of Commons Wednesday to disrupt a debate on banning the centuries-old sport.

Guards hustled the men away, but the incident showed -- as did the man dressed as Batman who scaled the walls of Buckingham Palace on Monday -- the vulnerability of Britain's seats of power. One lawmaker said there had not been such an intrusion in Parliament since 1642.

Security was stepped up immediately, with armed police guarding the chamber in place of the usual footmen and stewards.

With passions running high in the fox hunting debate, security had appeared tight at Parliament on Wednesday. Lines of police corralled some 10,000 demonstrators behind barricades across the street from the building.

Officers drew batons and exchanged blows with some protesters, who had thrown wooden placards.

Police said 11 people were arrested in the clashes and a total of 19 people, including two police officers, suffered minor injuries.

Police declined to say what charges the five men who burst into the House of Commons could face.

Following the tense daylong debate, lawmakers voted 339 to 155 to ban fox hunting after July 2006. The Hunting Bill faces intense opposition in Parliament's unelected upper chamber, the House of Lords. But the ban appears inevitable -- the government has promised to force through the legislation.

The invasion of Parliament and the protests outside were a dramatic demonstration of the passions aroused in the debate over hunting foxes and other prey with dog packs. Opponents say it is a barbaric practice that has no place in modern society. Supporters say Blair's government, which has vowed to outlaw the sport, is needlessly meddling in their rural way of life.

Members of the public were prevented from even approaching Parliament's ornate gates Wednesday without being accompanied by security pass holders, who include journalists, lawmakers and Parliament staff.

Pass-holders do not have to sign a register when they bring in guests but are expected to accompany them around the building. All members of the public who do not hold a pass have their bags screened and must pass through a metal detector.

The five demonstrators breached an area of the Commons usually off limits to the public except on official tours.

One protester stood at the central box where ministers and opposition leaders make statements, shouting and gesticulating at Rural Affairs Minister Alun Michael. "This isn't democracy. You are overturning democracy," he said.

Doorkeepers, dressed in traditional black outfits, wrestled the men to the ground and dragged them from the chamber.

The British Broadcasting Corp. said one of its reporters had been tipped off about the protesters' plans. The BBC said the protesters had staged a dry run on Tuesday disguised as builders.

Labour lawmaker Stuart Bell said it had been the worst security breach since 1642, when King Charles attempted to arrest five members of the Commons.

"Not since Charles I came to this House has there been such an invasion," he said.

Irish terrorists struck at Parliament in 1979, killing Conservative lawmaker Airey Neave with a bomb planted beneath his car.

Wednesday's scare came two days after a protester dressed as Batman scaled the front of Buckingham Palace. That protest was staged by Fathers 4 Justice, the same group that sent two men to throw the purple flour at Blair.

One of those men, Ron Davis, was convicted of disorderly behavior on Wednesday, placed on two years probation and ordered to pay $800 in fines.