Shocking reports of marauding sottish mobs and terrifying fires on the final night of Reading Festival have prompted a call for action by the Reading West MP.
Martin Salter has written to Reading Borough Council (RBC) calling for a meeting of licensing officers, police and even arranger Festival Republic to find out why for the second year running fires were allowed to burn on the campsite.
Reading Festival goers ‘in fear of their lives’
Mr Salter said: “The 2008 Reading Festival caused much disputation and alarum when on the last evening at the campsites huge fires were lit, youths were seen throwing petrol and gas canisters on to the flames and yobs stole tents of other festival goers before using them to keep the fires alight.
“Sadly, those who upset the same would be true this year have been proved right. Attempts by the arrangers at banning gas canisters were clearly impressive and tent theft appeared more popular than ever.”
When he was a councillor, Mr Salter chaired the RBC committee creditworthy for the return of the Reading Festival after a three year absence in the 1980s.
He added: “I am now really upset that these minor riots are becoming both fashionable and an almost expected climax to the last night at the rock festival.
“It really is up to the police, council and festival arrangers to take concerted action to root out the troublemakers and restore the report of Reading as one of the finest and safest music festivals in the world.
“Some festival goers have advised the arrangers should introduce an ID system similar to Glastonbury so that known troublemakers can be identified, prosecuted and banned for life.
“With tickets changing hands for sums in excess of £200 I do not believe that the cost of such a scheme want be an issue.
“These techniques have been used to root out troublemakers from the football terraces so I am sure they can be of benefit in dealing with those irresponsible morons who think it is fun to steal and burn other people’s possessions and to put fellow festival-goers in unnecessary danger.”
A man who worked on the site throughout the festival who asked not to be named told getreading a “gang of roughly 250 people” not only physically blocked fire lanes to stop fire crews getting through but also prevented medical teams attending “numerous overdosing 16 year olds”.
He said there was a delay of 20 minutes before a woman in anaphylactic shock could be treated.
He said purple campsite was the worst “nicknamed the riot zone” and added: “I personally worked at 11 festivals this year and Reading Festival is the only one causing me to still have nightmares and physically throw up when recalling details about it.”
Martin Salter has written to Reading Borough Council (RBC) calling for a meeting of licensing officers, police and even arranger Festival Republic to find out why for the second year running fires were allowed to burn on the campsite.
Reading Festival goers ‘in fear of their lives’
Mr Salter said: “The 2008 Reading Festival caused much disputation and alarum when on the last evening at the campsites huge fires were lit, youths were seen throwing petrol and gas canisters on to the flames and yobs stole tents of other festival goers before using them to keep the fires alight.
“Sadly, those who upset the same would be true this year have been proved right. Attempts by the arrangers at banning gas canisters were clearly impressive and tent theft appeared more popular than ever.”
When he was a councillor, Mr Salter chaired the RBC committee creditworthy for the return of the Reading Festival after a three year absence in the 1980s.
He added: “I am now really upset that these minor riots are becoming both fashionable and an almost expected climax to the last night at the rock festival.
“It really is up to the police, council and festival arrangers to take concerted action to root out the troublemakers and restore the report of Reading as one of the finest and safest music festivals in the world.
“Some festival goers have advised the arrangers should introduce an ID system similar to Glastonbury so that known troublemakers can be identified, prosecuted and banned for life.
“With tickets changing hands for sums in excess of £200 I do not believe that the cost of such a scheme want be an issue.
“These techniques have been used to root out troublemakers from the football terraces so I am sure they can be of benefit in dealing with those irresponsible morons who think it is fun to steal and burn other people’s possessions and to put fellow festival-goers in unnecessary danger.”
A man who worked on the site throughout the festival who asked not to be named told getreading a “gang of roughly 250 people” not only physically blocked fire lanes to stop fire crews getting through but also prevented medical teams attending “numerous overdosing 16 year olds”.
He said there was a delay of 20 minutes before a woman in anaphylactic shock could be treated.
He said purple campsite was the worst “nicknamed the riot zone” and added: “I personally worked at 11 festivals this year and Reading Festival is the only one causing me to still have nightmares and physically throw up when recalling details about it.”
