There has been major disruption at the Port of Dover due to a large group of masked men holding a demonstration.

Hundreds of protesters, dressed in black and wearing face coverings, blocked roads and were heard chanting “stop the boats”.

Traffic was stopped from going in and out of the port, with the government saying it condemned “the behaviour in Dover and the travel disruption it has caused”.

Kent Police, which made no arrests, described it as a “spontaneous” protest, while Mike Tapp MP said questions need to be asked around why it appeared the police “didn’t know about it”.

Officers moved the crowd from the port to Dover Priory railway station at about 11:30 BST and said “all involved had dispersed by 12:00”.

Paul King, Reform UK councillor for Dover West, said he had been told it was a “stop the boats protest”.

Kent Police has not yet commented on who was behind the demo.

Anti-hate organisation Hope Not Hate claims that the Patriot Platform network arranged the protest, saying the group began meeting in July and has brought together members of anti-migrant groups from around the country.

Demonstrators told the BBC they did not want to talk to the media, although one said “send them back” and another said “stop the boats” when approached.

Far-right activists Tommy Robinson and Danny Thomas both posted about it on X, praising those involved.

Thomas wrote: “The experience on the ground today, was the overwhelming majority of the women and local people we spoke to were thankful that people were actually doing something.”