Cressida Dick was today accused of allowing Extinction Rebellion protesters to take control of the police.

Members of the House of Lords urged the Government to step in and take urgent action as protesters disrupted Westminster for a second day, pitching tents and gluing themselves to buildings.

The former speaker of the House of Commons, Baroness Boothroyd said that she had taken part in demonstrations when younger, but added: “In those days the police were in control of me as a demonstrator.

"Now it seems to me that the demonstrators are in control of the police."

Her comments were echoed by Tory former Cabinet minister Lord Forsyth suggested that it was “just another example of the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Cressida Dick, doing her best and it not being good enough."

Their comments came after officers had reportedly asked meat traders not to beep their horns when arriving at the 800-year-old Smithfield market in the early hours of Tuesday morning so as not to wake the sleeping demonstrators inside.

Baroness Williams of Trafford, a Home Office Minister, admitted in response to an urgent question that the city of London was "gridlocked” and the effect on business was "quite disgraceful".