Piers Corbyn today hit out at the “Covid con” as he addressed supporters outside Westminster Magistrates’ Court.
The former Labour Party leader’s brother is facing trial accused of breaching coronavirus restrictions during anti-lockdown protests in London’s Hyde Park in May.
Mr Corbyn, speaking via a megaphone, told around 20 protestors: “If we win, all the Covid convictions so far will be questioned.”
He also unfurled a banner promoting anti-vaccine, anti-lockdown and 5G conspiracy theories, as dozens of police officers watched on.
He is also accused of encouraging others to break the law by allegedly sending a tweet plugging the anti-lockdown protest.
A judge has rejected an application by Piers Corbyn’s lawyers to stay his trial proceedings as “an abuse of process” in relation to the disclosure of prosecution material.
District judge Samuel Goozee said there had been “late disclosure” of material by the prosecution but this “doesn’t prevent the fairness to the trial being overseen by the court”.
He said there was “no evidence of bad faith” nor of the court “being deliberately mislead” and that he was not persuaded the “mishandling” of material amounted to an abuse of process.
Piers Corbyn, of East Street, Southwark, appeared in court holding a supermarket carrier bag and wore a blue shirt with a burgundy tie underneath a dark-coloured suit jacket.
The 73-year-old weather forecaster sat outside the dock during initial proceedings and wrote in a notebook.
Corbyn, who denies the charges, is already locked in multiple legal battles over his arrests at demonstrations over the last nine months.
He believes he has been “specifically targeted” by police and will rely on a lack of arrests at Black Lives Matters marches to fight his defence.
