Custard thrown at face of British minister

[Naveed Yaseen]

Custard thrown at British minister
LONDON (March 07 2009): A protester threw green custard in the face of British business minister Peter Mandelson on Friday, in a stunt to highlight opposition to a new runway at Londons Heathrow airport. The former EU trade commissioner was arriving for a London summit on carbon strategy when protester Leila Deen approached him and hurled a large cupful of custard straight in Mandelsons face, at close range.

Mandelson bent over, turned away and hurried inside, while the protester picked up papers she had dropped and calmly walked off. "Mandelson is trying to make political capital out of climate change," said serial campaigner Deen, a member of the group Plane Stupid, which has staged several protests over plans to build a third runway at Heathrow, in west London.

"The only thing green about Peter Mandelson is the slime coursing through his veins. "We cant let the Prince of Darkness cast his shadow over west London" - a reference to Mandelsons nickname earned for his media spinning skills. The incident appeared to raise security questions, since Deen, 29, approached Mandelson unchecked and walked off freely afterwards.

Mandelson, who returned to the British government in October, seemed unfazed by the stunt, saying he did not fear for his security and people should not over-react. "It could have been nastier," the 55-year-old told reporters later - minus his splattered coat.

"Whilst Im prepared to take my fair share of the green revolution on to my shoulders, Im less keen on having it on my face. "In a sense I guess I should be grateful to the protester for helping us to put this very important subject on the map." However, he added: "I would rather people said it to my face than threw it in my face."

A Scotland Yard spokesman said no arrests had been made and an investigation would only be launched if a complaint was received. But former deputy prime minister John Prescott - who famously punched a protester in the face after being pelted with an egg in 2001 - voiced anger and said that Deen should have been arrested.

"For those moments when you receive that kind of assault, you dont know what it is. He couldnt have known whether that was acid being thrown in his face," he said on his video blog. "What is totally unacceptable is the way the woman walked away, claiming that it was her right in a democracy. She should have been arrested... If it would have been acid, would she still be walking away?"

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