As it happened: Police disperse protesters at Shrine of Remembrance; Daniel Andrews condemns demonstrations

Good evening, and thank you for joining us for live coverage of today’s protests.

In case you are just tuning in, here is a wrap of what you have missed throughout the day.

• Today’s protests were significantly smaller and less unruly than Tuesday’s. Scattered groups of demonstrators engaged in a game of cat and mouse with Victorian riot police throughout the morning, with officers pursuing small and seemingly disorganised crowds as they marched along several CBD streets. A handful of arrests were made as members of Victoria Police’s Public Order Response and Critical Incident Response teams converged on the city in a show of force, stopping people who attempted to enter the CBD and checking their identification.

• By early afternoon, protesters were growing in numbers near the Melbourne headquarters of the CFMEU, north of the Queen Victoria Market, where there was also a large police presence. The construction union’s office windows had been boarded over after protesters gathered there on Monday, throwing projectiles including bottles.

• The protesters converged on the Shrine of Remembrance later in the afternoon. They periodically chanted a mix of anti-vaccine slogans and invective at Premier Daniel Andrews and sang the national anthem, also holding a minute’s silence for people who have died by suicide in the pandemic and at one stage taking a knee in front of police officers. Police offered the protesters safe passage to leave the Shrine via St Kilda Road, but some refused, saying they wanted to leave through the centre.

• The protesters were ultimately dispersed from the Shrine just before 5pm, with police deploying capsicum spray and foam batons, among other non-lethal measures. Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Ross Guenther said more than 200 people were arrested in the protests, out of a crowd of up to about 400. He said some protesters threw golf balls and tap handles at police, and “it was completely disrespectful that the crowd ended up at the Shrine, which is such a hallowed ground in this great city”. Mr Guenther warned protesters from coming back again tomorrow.

Thank you again for joining us today. For continued live coverage this evening, you can switch over to our national blog.

Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Ross Guenther provided an update on today’s protests at about 6.30pm AEST.

You can watch a playback video below.

Victoria Police has overturned its ban on media helicopters flying over Melbourne to cover the protests, only hours after it was announced.

Victoria Police made an application to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority on Wednesday to temporarily restrict air space in the Melbourne CBD.

A spokeswoman said on Wednesday evening that while that decision was made “for operational and safety reasons in relation to the protest activity, we acknowledge the concerns raised by the media”.

“As a result, Victoria Police will include a provision for media outlets to operate their aircrafts over the CBD,” she said.

As part of the conditions of the provision, pilots will need to get approval from Victoria Police’s airwing before they take off, to ensure there are no safety risks.

“Media outlets will also be required to delay publishing any livestream footage from the air by 60 minutes or at the conclusion of the operation,” the spokeswoman said.

“This is because protestors were actively monitoring aerial livestreams, compromising the police operation and putting the safety of members at risk.”

Riot police have put down their shields and moved back from hundreds of protesters at the Shrine of Remembrance to try and encourage demonstrators to leave peacefully.

Protesters who appear to be leading the group have said on megaphones that police have told them that those who want to leave, can do so peacefully.

Police then moved back slightly by a few metres from the main group to engender some trust.

Riot police had formed a tight ring around the demonstrators, who are still on the steps of the war memorial off St Kilda Road in the city, reporter Michael Fowler, who is on the scene, says.

Fowler and senior crime journalist Cameron Houston, also on scene, estimates about 400 police were currently at the Shrine.