In addition to the Protected Sites, the act is controversial primarily for sections 132 to 138, which restrict the right to
demonstrate within a "designated area" of up to one
kilometre from any point in
Parliament Square. Demonstrators must give written notice to the
Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police six days in advance, or if this is not reasonably practicable then no less than 24 hours in advance. The area itself is defined by a
Statutory Instrument, the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (Designated Area) Order 2005, rather than the act. It specifically excludes
Trafalgar Square, a traditional site of protest on the northern boundary of the area. Apart from Parliament it also includes
Whitehall,
Downing Street,
Westminster Abbey, the
Middlesex Guildhall,
New Scotland Yard, and the
Home Office. It also covers a small section of land on the other bank of the
River Thames, including
County Hall, the
Jubilee Gardens,
St Thomas' Hospital and the
London Eye. These provisions of the act were introduced partially as a result of
Brian Haw and his
Parliament Square Peace Campaign. Haw was a peace campaigner, who from 1 June 2001 until his death on 18 June 2011 protested against Britain and the United States' policy towards
Iraq. However, others, such as
Jeremy Corbyn MP disagreed, saying "The Minister should think carefully about removing rights that are enshrined in our history", and
Glenda Jackson MP agreed with him, saying "I regard it as the voice of democracy". The legislation initially appeared ineffective against Haw. The
High Court of Justice ruled that as Haw's protest had begun in June 2001 he was not required to get authorisation. The three-strong judicial panel accepted arguments by Haw's lawyers that the law only applied to demonstrations that took place after it came into force, not those previously in progress. However, on 8 May 2006, this decision was overturned by the
Court of Appeal. On 1 August 2005, the day that the act came into force, the
Stop the War Coalition and others organised a protest against the prohibition. They did not officially ask for permission, but at the subsequent court cases it was revealed that the Stop the War Coalition had negotiated with police about the protest. The action attracted some 200 people according to reports – among them
Lauren Booth,
Tony Blair's sister-in-law – and five people were arrested. In 2006, the comedian and political activist
Mark Thomas attacked this section of the act by organising several protests within the area, within the confines of the law. His most notable was when he organised 21 protests over the course of a single day within the area. This act got Thomas into the
Guinness Book of Records for taking part in the most protests in a single day. However, as the first and last protest took place in the same location, only 20 protests are recognised by Guinness. In January 2007
Tate Britain opened
State Britain, an
installation by artist
Mark Wallinger that recreated the display confiscated by the police from Brian Haw's protest. The Tate press release on the exhibition mentioned that the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 prohibited "unauthorised demonstrations within a one kilometre radius of Parliament Square" and that this radius passed through the Duveen Hall, literally bisecting Wallinger's exhibit. Wallinger marked this on the floor with a black line running through the Tate. Press reports dwelt on the potential dangers of this infringement, speculating that the police might even remove the half of the exhibit on the "wrong" side of the line.
Charles Thomson of the
Stuckists art group wrote to
The Guardian, pointing out that the exclusion zone ended at Thorney Street, 300 yards before the Tate.
Gordon Brown said that he planned to look again at this section of the SOCPA, which "takes another look at sections 132–138 [of SOCPA] and explores whether there is another way to address the situation that would both uphold the right to protest while also giving police the powers they need to keep the peace". Sections 132 to 138 of the act were repealed by the
Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011, which provides for a different scheme of "prohibited activities" on Parliament Square. ==Harassment==