The vandalism of Lord Balfour’s portrait at Cambridge last year was not just a petty act of criminal damage — it was an all-out assault on British heritage. And what’s worse? The police seem to have shrugged and walked away, the criminals have escaped justice, and Trinity College seems content to move on in silence.
This cowardice is symptomatic of a broader disease infecting our national life — a two-tier system of justice where radical activists, emboldened by their own self-righteous delusion, are allowed to destroy without consequence. It’s difficult not to see this vandalism as cultural terrorism masquerading as activism.
Palestine Action — a group so extreme it’s now proscribed under anti-terror laws — publicly claimed responsibility for slashing and spray-painting a portrait over 100 years old. A priceless work by Philip de László, it wasn’t just a painting. It was a piece of our national memory, a representation of a former Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary who helped shape Britain’s role in the modern world.
And yet in a matter of seconds, it was defaced by a thug with a knife and a can of paint. If you don’t care for Balfour’s politics, fine. That isn’t the point. The point is that we are witnessing, again and again, the hard-left’s disdain for Britain made manifest — in red paint and shattered glass. They hate who we are, and they feel entitled to express that hatred by attacking what we hold dear.
They tear down statues, desecrate war memorials, deface art, and still walk free. Why? Because for too long, this country has operated a grotesque double standard in law enforcement: one for ordinary people, another for radical left-wing vandals. The Cambridgeshire Constabulary’s excuse? Despite CCTV, despite public admissions from Palestine Action, they say they “can’t identify a suspect.” Rubbish. The evidence is there. The footage exists.
The group responsible openly bragged about it online. If they can’t make an arrest here, one
wonders what would qualify. Thankfully, someone is willing to stand up. The Great British Political Action Committee, led by a
student who still cares about Britain, is demanding accountability. They’ve written to Trinity College, asking the obvious but necessary questions: What evidence was given to the police? Did the College push for a full investigation? Has the CCTV been properly reviewed? And crucially — what steps are being taken to prevent this from happening again?
Jake Watts, Deputy Universities Director at the Great British PAC, is absolutely right to consider a private prosecution. When the state abdicates its duty, it falls to citizens to uphold the rule of law. And the message must be loud and clear: deface British heritage, and you will pay a price. The perpetrators must be found, tried, and punished — not with a slap on the wrist but with a sentence that makes future vandals think twice before lifting a finger against our cultural inheritance.
The left has been allowed to run riot in our institutions, polluting academia with ideology, and now they turn to physical destruction when their arguments fall flat. They’ve been emboldened by weak leadership and even weaker policing. But they are not the majority. The majority of Britons — whether at Cambridge or in Carlisle — know instinctively that what happened to that portrait was wrong. That it crossed a line. That heritage matters.
This portrait of Lord Balfour deserves justice — not because of who he was, but because of what it represents: that Britain is a nation with a history worth defending. And that history must not be defaced by cowards with knives and slogans. The Great British PAC is right to fight. And the rest of the country should stand with them. Because if we won’t defend our past, we have no future worth fighting for.