Cops fear anti-monarchy anarchists may infiltrate royal wedding

Police fear anti-monarchy anarchists are planning to infiltrate the royal wedding next month and are considering using stop and search powers to prevent troublemakers disrupting it.

Metropolitan police commander Bob Broadhurst said officers would be taking action to prevent a repeat of the kind of violence and disorder seen around the TUC's March for the Alternative in London last week, reports the Daily Mail.

Broadhurst admitted that the police operation had 'failed in parts', but insisted that officers were not able to arrest potential rioters ahead of the march and did not need additional powers to deal with protests.

The Met will take a different approach to policing Prince William's wedding to Kate Middleton on April 29, watching out for every threat "from terrorism downwards", he said.

Asked if that could involve stopping and searching people on their way to central London on the day of the wedding, he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “We are looking specifically at the royal wedding and what we can to do prevent Saturday's disorder and violence creeping in to that event.

“We always look at our powers to try to quell violence before it happens,” he added.

Broadhurst said the wedding would present a very different policing challenge from Saturday's march.