Protesters gathered outside the British Airways Arc venue in West London on Tuesday, June 23, as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (Arc) summit began, an event co-founded by Jordan Peterson that brings together right-wing figures, US state officials, and anti-abortionists. Dubbed the 'anti-woke Davos', the summit promises to 'recover civilisational foundations'.
Protesters dressed as frogs denounce attendees
Demonstrators dressed as frogs, in solidarity with US frog-themed anti-ICE protests, shouted 'shame on you' and 'how can you sleep at night?' as smiling attendees arrived at the new Olympia development. Among the attendees were Reform UK MP Nigel Farage and fellow Reform UK MP Sarah Pochin.
Robin Wells, Director of Fossil Free London, said: 'Suited men are gathering in our city today. Their oily money is fuelling the extreme heat we're sweating through, and we're left poorer than ever before whilst they profiteer from war and crisis.'
Eton College representatives among guests
Other notable guests included Tom Arbuthnott, deputy head of Eton College, and Luke Martin, a theology teacher at the elite school attended by Prince George. Andrew Rosindell, Reform advisers, British crypto billionaire Ben Delo—who has given £4 million to Nigel Farage’s party—and representatives from Israeli spyware company Palantir, known for its facial recognition technology used by ICE, also attended.
Arc spokesperson defends summit's goals
An Arc spokesperson said the summit aimed to bring together leaders in technology to 'recover civilisational foundations'. They stated: 'When we launched in 2023, it was tantamount to heresy to challenge net zero – now everyone from Bill Gates and Tony Blair to leaders across the right have made the point that abundant, reliable, cheap energy is the base layer of modern civilisation. At the same time, no one was talking about demographic decline as a major risk for the west, now it is firmly on the radar.'
Fossil Free London compares conference to Titanic
Robin Wells of Fossil Free London compared the conference to 'the first-class deck and captain of the Titanic plotting ways to distract us all', adding: 'As this climate-change-induced heat suffocates us, they're funding climate denial, bankrolling attacks on minorities and setting up narratives of division - all to ensure we're looking in every direction except at them.'
Farage defends £5 million crypto gift
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Nigel Farage defended a £5 million gift from Thailand-based crypto entrepreneur Christopher Harborne, saying 'no one cares' about it. Asked how much he had spent, Farage replied: 'It’s none of your business.' He stated: 'I’m absolutely convinced I’ve done nothing wrong in any way at all. I also know that since I was elected as an MP, I’ve taken zero in personal expenses. I’m very careful and very cautious about these things.'
Farage described the gift as 'unconditional' and said he could 'spend it on cars if I want to'. He claimed it was partly due to being 'the most attacked and endangered politician in Britain for well over a decade' and that the state had 'point blank refused' to help him. When asked if he had given an interview about becoming an MP before accepting the gift, Farage acknowledged he had initially said he would not stand but later changed his mind.
