Police officers removed a pink boat left in Oxford Circus by climate change protesters on Friday after admitting they had finally “come up with a strategy”, five days after parts of London were left paralysed.

Shortly after Dame Emma Thompson, the actress, had addressed the crowd from the flag-draped vessel, specialist officers moved in and began to clear the area, cutting off the sound system and carrying activists away from the scene.

The escalation of force followed criticism that Scotland Yard had failed to deal adequately with the Extinction Rebellion demonstration, which has blocked transport hubs and taken over busy thoroughfares in the capital.

Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, admitted it had taken several days to form an appropriate policy to deal with the largely middle-class, non-violent activists because it was an “alien” situation.

“We have come up with a formula and a strategy and are now fully prepared,” he told The Daily Telegraph.

“It took a while but it’s a very difficult situation and we had to get it right. We didn’t want to be disproportionate but we’re in a better place now.

“These people are from suburbia. They are saying: ‘Please be careful when you put the handcuffs on’. We are usually rolling around on the floor having to fight people.”