Merry S***tmas: Wealth protesters dump ‘manure’ under the Ritz hotel’s iconic Christmas tree

The Ritz Hotel’s decadent Christmas tree is sparkling with lights, covered in ornaments and, thanks to wealth-tax protestors, apparently fertilised with something far less festive.

Forget coal for the naughty. This year, they will be unwrapping piles of manure.

Three supporters of Take Back Power pulled out plastic bags of manure and poured them underneath the iconic luxury hotel’s Christmas tree.

The group call themselves Take Back Power and say they are a new nonviolent civil-resistance group demanding the UK government establish a permanent citizen’s assembly that has the power to tax extreme wealth.

The three protestors were quickly dragged away and removed from the lobby area.

Outside of the entrance to the world famous hotel they held signs which read: ‘INEQUALITY IS S*#T’ and ‘TAX THE RICH.’

Ellen Redwood-Brown, 23, an NHS worker and one of those taking action today, said: ‘The billionaires, corporations, and corrupt politicians running Britain don’t care about us.

‘While working in the NHS, I’ve seen people dying because they couldn’t get appointments, whilst doctors are working 15-hour shifts.

‘The UK has 156 billionaires. We could take away 75% of that wealth to fix Britain, and we’d still have 156 billionaires. We must let ordinary people decide how to tax the rich.’

A former doctor, journalist, and community worker from Nottingham, Tom Barber, 65, said: ‘Power is concentrated in the hands of a small group of obscenely wealthy and ruthless individuals.

‘They are hell-bent on enriching themselves, forcing the gap between the haves and the have-nots ever wider.

‘Every day, people must Take Back Power, compelling our government to create a permanent citizens’ assembly- a House of the People.

‘Only then can we start making decisions for everyone’s benefit- taxing the rich, creating a fairer society and restoring our faith in our democracy.’

A Take Back Power spokesperson said: ‘The super-rich have more than doubled their wealth since the pandemic, while this Christmas, a third of UK children suffer and grow up in poverty.

‘It’s time ordinary people- those most affected by inequality, get a say in deciding how to tax wealth through the means of a legally binding citizens’ assembly- a House of the People.’

The Ritz declined to comment.

The Met Police and Take Back Power have been approached for comment.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.