Home Secretary Priti Patel has said she disagrees with the act of taking a knee as a protest against racism, as she criticised Black Lives Matter demonstrations.
She told LBC radio: “Last summer was quite a moment with all the protest that we saw taking place.
“We saw policing as well coming under a great deal of pressure from some of the protest. I don’t support protest and I also did not support the protests that were associated…”
Interrupted, she sought to clarify that she was not criticising the right to protest but rather the “dreadful” action last year.
Ms Patel said she would not take the knee herself, and asked if she agrees with the gesture more generally, she replied: “No.”
Taking a knee is a sign of solidarity with the movement against racial oppression.
It began in 2016 in the UDSA with NFL player Colin Kaepernick.
Players began to go down on one knee during the national anthem before American Football games - instead of standing.
The gesture has become widespread across the globe.
The Black Lives Matter protests in the summer were sparked by the death of George Floyd in the USA, who died when a police officer knelt on his neck until he could no longer breathe - while arresting him for trying to use a forged bank note.
