An example of how stupid and ineffective the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 Designated Area law is, can be seen from today's demonstration by fathers' rights protestors who scaled part of Westminster Abbey, as reported by the BBC
Similar protests have been made by climbing up onto the Foreign Office parapet and by environmentalists climbing up St. Stephen's clock tower ("Big Ben"), both of which buildings are within the boundary of the Designated Area. Buckingham Palace is within the theoretical 1 kilometre maximum extent of the Designated Area, but not curretly within the boundary as laid down by Order.
However, none of these are actually part of the Designated Area since they are not "highways or pavements" and they are not a "public place" as defined by Section 132 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005
(b) "public place" means any highway or any place to which at the material time the public or any section of the public has access, on payment or otherwise, as of right or by virtue of express or implied permission,
The public areas of Westminster Abbey, where the tourists and religous worshipers congregate are covered by the Designated Area. Why should the Police have to decide whether a Religous service or ceremony in Westminster Abbey is or is not a Demonstration requiring prior written permission ?
All of these "climb up somewhere perilous on a public building" type publicity stunts have been in areas where the public does not have any "express or implied permission".
There is another section of the Act, Section 128 "Offence of trespassing on designated site", which can be used to Designate sites such as Crown Land or for National Security , but this has only been used so far to Designate some Military bases.and neither the Foreign Office, nor Buckingham Palace has yet been Designated.
Astonishingly, the Government has already amended this section of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 via the Terrorism Act 2006 Section 12 "Trespassing etc. on nuclear sites" , to also allow for the Designation of Civilian Nuclear sites (which are not owned by the Crown, having been semi privatised).
It has to be asked, what exactly have peaceful protests or demonstrations, even ones involving trespass, got to do with terrorism or with serious organised crime ?
why don't you flood the commissioner with requests, he has to respond within a reasonable time, you can make multiple requests but they have to be in writing either hand delivered or by recorded delivery you don't have to use the Form 3175A which the police issue it asks irrelevant questions, another way of protesting the act perhaps