PEOPLE power took to the streets of Kent’s busiest port on Saturday when hundreds of campaigners protested against government plans for an open prison at Dover.

Whistles blew, chants were yelled and banners were waved high as the noisy crowd marched through the shopping streets for a rally outside the Town Hall.

Dover MP Gwyn Prosser told the demonstration: "This open prison would be on the wrong site and this is a wrong decision. Dover has been dumped on and the Home Office has picked on the wrong town for a fight."

The Labour Party member said Dover had survived bad times in the past, with job cuts as well as immigration and asylum seeker problems.

But he believed the empty Connaught Barracks, the possible site for an open prison, had great potential for the town, possibly as an education campas.

He added: "With the promise of the Rail Link coming to Dover, we are now on the cusp of great things happening. Why suddenly snatch all that away and drop a very big boulder on this prestigious site?"

Mr Prosser said that even if the Government ministers decided the former barracks was an appropriate place for an open prison, he pledged to be march again on the streets of Dover to continue the protest.

Campaigners claim an open prison housing 400 Category D prisoners would ruin the town’s tourism, economy and quality of life.

They also believe the occupants could be a threat to school children in the area, with many marchers on Saturday waving banners saying Schools and Prisons Don’t Mix.

Two protest meetings against the proposals have been held in Dover and thousands of people have signed a petition calling for a rethink to the plans.