Around 50 people took part in an anti-government protest in Ripon, Yorkshire on Saturday 24 May, as part of the ‘Great British National Strike’. The protesters/strikers milled around on the pavement of Minster Road before dispersing after a few hours. There were no banners, placards or signs from the protesters in Ripon and none of them would speak to the press.
Over 70 cities and towns around the UK were used as locations for these protests, with Leeds, York, Sheffield and Ripon all being focused on. On the social media pages for ‘The Great National Strike’, various issues were mentioned, such as net zero, illegal immigration, and freedom of speech. It was not clear whether the ‘strikers’ were for these issues or against these issues, according to their own national literature.
In the UK, under the Human Rights Act, people have ‘freedom of expression’ already under Article 10, and although ‘freedom of speech’ may be a convenient short-hand, it does not carry the same legal distinction. It was also noticeably ironic to be protesting for ‘freedom of expression’, while only being able to do so because of that enshrined right.
Great British National Strike
Yorkshire Bylines contacted ‘The Great National Strike’ admin team to ask who the local liaison for the protest in Ripon would be, in order to set up an interview. We were told however, that “the whole event has been organised centrally” and that “there is no one in charge at any of the events, unless they have assumed that role of their own accord”.
In Ripon certainly, there was no coordination evident. Despite asking several times, no local organiser appeared, no one directed protesters on the day to avoid private property and businesses, no one was in charge of safety, no one engaged with the media present, and no one coordinated with the police.
Indeed, protesters had been instructed by the ‘central team’ not to speak to the press with the instruction: “Multiple mainstream media outlets will be reporting on the ground in multiple locations. It’s very easy for them to ask you a question and potentially twist your words. If approached, we recommend you simply say the following. ‘I’m not the official spokesperson for the National strike so you’re best speaking to them, thank you.’ This helps to keep you and us out of hot water.”
Counter protests
In Ripon on Saturday, a local resident, Josh Ramsbottom, was one of the few who turned up to counter the protest. Carrying a placard with the simple message “More Immigrants, Fewer Fascists”, Josh arrived just before 12 noon and tried repeatedly to engage and open up a dialogue and discourse with the protesters. Only one protester was observed speaking and listening to Josh over the period he was there.
Josh explained to Yorkshire Bylines why he was there, saying, “I attended the ‘National Strike’ yesterday to represent those in Ripon who don’t agree with the anti-immigration rhetoric. As a rural North Yorkshire seat, and with Tories and Reform being the most popular parties, I think it’s especially important to show that there is opposition to the far-right in areas like these”.
He continued, “Having witnessed the cost-of-living crisis at home and atrocities being committed abroad with help from the UK, I want to be part of the generation that turns things around, and changing the rhetoric around immigration is a big part of that since immigrants provide so much to our country”.
Organising a national ‘strike’
In March 2025, Richard Donaldson, the central organiser of these national rallies, boasted, “In just two weeks, we have amassed 5,000,000 views, 478,000 likes, 92,000 followers, And we are just getting started”. Since then, the fundraising has reached £16,156 from over 500 donations, with half coming from one single donor. For many observers, it is unclear who Donaldson is, or how he has managed to create a national protest in just under two months, if he is not using an underlying association and/or is being privately backed.
Using highly inflammatory language, Donaldson posted on the social media pages for ‘The Great National Strike’, that “The simple truth is, we are not safe as citizens of the UK. Illegals flood our country, milk us dry and rape our children. Two-tier justice is making it illegal to simply speak against the government issued narrative”.
Donaldson clearly sees no contradiction in claiming that it is illegal to speak against the government narrative, while simultaneously organising a national protest in multiple cities.
When is a strike not a strike?
While being interviewed on GB News, Donaldson attempted to explain why he used the term ‘strike’ as his language, rather than ‘protest’ or ‘demonstration.’ He stated: “I’ve called it a strike, while even though, yes, it is a protest, but there’s been a few legal obstacles that I have had to navigate.” He then said, “I’m a nobody” and continued to explain that the language was used to circumvent the algorithms on social media platforms, which would have limited his exposure had he used ‘protest’.
Readers will be familiar with workers who vote to go on strike to withdraw labour as a negotiation tool against employers, after industrial action has been voted on, whether these be doctors, teachers or miners. On the other hand, protests tend to involve a degree of organisation, direction and coordination, with local police, businesses and communities. For ‘The Great National Strike’, this level of direction and responsibility was simply not evident.
An attempt to subvert British democracy?
With ‘The Great British Strike’ also protesting ‘Net Zero’, it appeared that this legally binding target, enshrined in British law in the Climate Change Act 2008, is being used as a politically divisive topic, where no such division exists. The British public has consistently supported net zero policies.
In April 2025, a YouGov poll asked, “Do you support or oppose the UK’s target of becoming Net Zero by 2050?”. With 63% supporting this target and 26% opposing the position, it becomes clear that Net Zero is being artificially amplified and promoted by those on the right of the political spectrum to be a divisive topic.
The inflammatory language of the ‘strikers’ at the weekend, appears to be less based in factual evidence then and more based on emotional fears aimed at targeting already vulnerable people.
We did not see these anti-government ‘strikes’ during the past 14 years of the previous Conservative governments. Instead, they have been hatched eight months into a Labour government, which won by a landslide, reflecting why some of the public has viewed these ‘strikes’ as right-wing politically motivated.
Is this an attempt to circumvent and even subvert British democracy by refusing to accept a general election result? With ‘Phase 2’ of ‘The Great British Strike’ well into its planning phase, it is not beyond the imagination to fear violence on the streets of the UK, prompted by irresponsible, unaccountable, populist puppets.
With the 81st anniversary of D-Day in the next few weeks, surely a repeat of the divisive rhetoric of the right in the UK will be recognised as the threat that it is, and fought against once again.
