Bread, Butter and Civil Resistance: The Unfolding Plan of Take Back Power

In the swirl of London’s long winter shadows, where the city’s historic stones meet the hum of everyday commerce, a new chapter of protest is quietly taking shape. A group of activists — styling themselves with echoes of the folk hero who stole from the rich to give to the poor — have begun drawing attention not just with spectacle, but with increasingly ambitious plans that stretch from the Tower of London to the aisles of Waitrose.

It was only in December that Take Back Power first made headlines. In one stunt, four members covered the display case of the State Crown with apple crumble and custard, temporarily closing the Jewel House at the Tower and prompting several arrests. Days later, bags of manure were dumped beneath the Ritz Hotel’s grand Christmas tree, a symbol-laden protest aimed at wealth inequality and what the group calls “democracy crumbling.”

Now, at an official launch event in east London’s Limehouse Town Hall, the organisation’s leaders outlined what they describe as the first of three spring tactics: a series of so-called “take backs.” Their plan, they say, is straightforward in its logic — and provocative in its execution. They intend to enter upmarket Waitrose stores in April, “clear out” food items with large groups of 50–100 people, and redistribute them into local communities struggling with rising living costs.

Arthur Clifton, one of the group’s co-founders and a former leading figure in the environmental protest movement Just Stop Oil, framed it as a response to what he called the unaffordability of basic necessities. “We’ve seen that food is locked behind skyrocketing prices,” he told supporters, urging activists to join what he described as “bread and butter civil resistance” — not just symbolic gestures, but direct action aimed at stores perceived to reflect the broader inequalities in society.

The proposal has drawn immediate criticism from political figures. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp accused the group of “trying to dress up criminality with some kind of moral purpose,” warning that mass shoplifting cannot be justified by rhetoric, however compelling its underlying message may be.

Take Back Power insists its approach is non-violent and morally grounded, drawing historical parallels with past movements that challenged entrenched systems. At the launch event, chants of “revolution” mixed with discussions of alternative governance models — including a proposed “House of the People” in which representatives might be selected at random rather than through traditional elections.

The group is also planning broader demonstrations, including occupations of luxury stores around Oxford Circus, and aims to mobilise up to 10,000 people ahead of the next general election. Its fundraising effort has garnered tens of thousands of pounds, earmarked for organising public meetings, training sessions and travel expenses for activists nationwide.

For now, Londoners may watch these developments with a mixture of curiosity and concern. What begins as a vision of redistribution and protest sits uneasily with questions about legality, safety and the rights of workers and customers in the targeted shops. As the city prepares for what might be a turbulent spring of activism, the line between dramatic statement and disruptive act — and where civil resistance ends and criminality begins — is set to be tested on both the high street and in public discourse.

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Sources Yahoo News UK The Standard