Rice to face more anti-war protests

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is set to face further demonstrations by anti-war protesters on the second day of her visit to north-west England.
Ms Rice and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw are due to meet with Muslim leaders and other local dignitaries at Blackburn Town Hall after a visit to the town’s cathedral.

Their planned trip to a local mosque was cancelled earlier this week because of safety fears.

A Stop the War Coalition spokesman said the pressure group hoped thousands of people would join a march to the town hall against US foreign policy.

Ms Rice and Mr Straw will take lunch at Hoghton Tower, a manor house on the outskirts of Blackburn then tour the Maritime Museum at Liverpool’s Albert Dock.

The museum charts how raw cotton picked by black slaves in America’s deep south and destined for Lancashire’s textile mills passed through Liverpool’s docks at the dawn of the industrial age.

While Ms Rice’s official visit finishes at the museum this evening, she is expected to stay in Liverpool overnight.

On Friday night she faced large demonstrations as she attended a gala concert at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall.

Daily Mail