More than 11,000 police officers will be on duty in London for King Charles’ Coronation on Saturday.

It will be the biggest ceremonial event staged in the British capital for 70 years.

The security forces gained logistical practice during the Queen’s State Funeral and they are well prepared to handle any incident.

Months of preparation have gone into the Coronation, which will be attended by world leaders and foreign dignitaries.

Like the Queen’s funeral, the threat level for Saturday is “through the roof”.

Not only must the authorities be vigilant against terrorist threats, they also have to be aware of lone extremists and group demonstrations.

There will also be many tends of thousands of people lining the route.

Thousands of military personnel will take part in a procession.

Security Minister Tom Tugendhat told Times Radio the event was one of the most important security operations the country has ever mounted.

He said: “The police are, to put it mildly, all over it, and our intelligence and other security forces are extremely aware of the challenge that we face.”

This was demonstrated on Tuesday evening when a man who threw suspected shotgun cartidges into Buckingham Palace was swiftly detained and taken away.

Metropolitan Police also carried out a controlled explosion on his back pack.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan of London’s Metropolitan Police said there was no intelligence of any specific threat to the event.

He said: “What we will not stand for and what we will not have is anyone committing criminal acts in the name of protest.

“We will come down very swiftly to intervene, to make sure that people that are going about their normal business that just want to enjoy the Coronation are not interfered with.”

Protest groups highlighting issues who intend to cause disruption will be dealt with under new legislative powers.

While no one will be stopped from having their say, trouble-makers will be dealt with.

UK SECURITY NEWS