Commons Speaker orders review after Big Ben clock tower security incident

A security review has been ordered by the Commons Speaker after a man scaled the clock tower housing Big Ben.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he wanted to ensure “lessons are learnt” following the incident, as he thanked those for helping to resolve it safely.

Daniel Day, of Palmerston Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, was charged with intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance and trespassing on a protected site.

He appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday afternoon and spoke to confirm his identity.

No pleas were entered.

Judge Annabel Pilling decided to remand Day into custody until his next court appearance on March 17.

Day allegedly spent more than 16 hours barefoot and holding a Palestine flag while perched on the clock tower of Big Ben, before being lifted to the ground in a cherry picker.

Opening business in the Commons on Monday, Sir Lindsay said: “The safety and security of all those who work on and visit the parliamentary estate is my top priority.

“I’ve asked for a review to be undertaken of Saturday’s incident. I will ensure lessons are learnt from it.

“I want to thank all those who were involved in helping to ensure Saturday’s incident was resolved safely. An individual has been charged.”

In a video posted on Instagram on Saturday evening, the man told negotiators from the ledge he was sat on that he would come down “on his own terms”.

In the footage, negotiators on an aerial ladder platform appear to raise concerns about an injury to his foot, saying there is “quite a lot of blood” and that his clothes were not warm enough as temperatures dropped after sunset.

But he insisted he was safe, saying: “I will come down on my own terms, I have said this. But right now I am saying I am safe.

“If you come towards me you are putting me in danger and I will climb higher.”

In the afternoon, shouts of “Free Palestine” and “You are a hero” could be heard from a small group of supporters behind the police cordon at Victoria Embankment.

Videos posted to social media on Saturday allegedly showed the man climbing over a security fence near the Houses of Parliament without being approached by security forces.

In a post on X, Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty called for an explanation about how Day allegedly accessed the parliamentary estate.

He said: “Every day in Parliament I see dozens of armed police officers patrolling Portcullis House and the parliamentary estate. Where were they today?

“On Monday there needs to be a full explanation to MPs and staff as to how this protester was able to evade security so easily.”

Parliamentary tours were cancelled in the wake of the incident.