Minister vows to close ‘loophole’ after court clears Colston statue topplers

Grant Shapps leads calls to change law limiting prosecution of people who damage memorials

• Path of resistance: timeline of protest against Edward Colston

Britain is not a country where destroying public property can ever be acceptable", a cabinet minister has said, as Conservative MPs vented their frustration at four people being cleared of tearing down a statue of the slave trader Edward Colston.

Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, said the law would be changed to close a potential loophole" limiting the prosecution of people who damage memorials as part of the police, crime, sentencing and courts (PCSC) bill.