Police in Brussels were called to shut down an ongoing gathering seeing a number of right-wing leaders in attendance.

The National Conservatism Conference at the Claridge venue, near the European Quarter in the Belgian capital, was set to last for the next two days.

However, the event was short-lived, as police officers informed its organisers two hours into the conference that it had to come to a premature close.

Politico reported having heard a police officer telling one of the event’s organisers: “The authorities decided to shut the event due to possibility of public disorder.”

Author Rod Dreher claimed on X that a local authority was “trying to shut off electricity”.

Stressing in a later tweet he was referring to the mayor of the Saint-Josse-ten-Noode where the venue is, the author wrote: “We are waiting for the cops now. Mayor trying to shut off electricity to hall, and catering. This is supposedly a free democratic country. EUROPE WAKE UP!”

Emir Kir, the mayor of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode where the Claridge is situated, had previously told Politico he would “immediately take measures to ban” NatCon.

Nigel Farage, Reform UK’s spiritual leader and the architect of Brexit, managed to appear on stage and deliver a keynote speech before the conference was quickly brought to an end.

Mr Farage hit out at Brussels in a video he posted on X, accusing the de facto capital of the European Union of getting “even worse” since he left his post as an MEP after Brexit.

He said: “On my way back to Brussels, it’s my first public visit there for four years since the day I left on the eve of us leaving the EU. I’m going to the NatCon conference this is run by the Edmund Burke Society, an American organisation.

“Lots of prominent European figures attending ahead of course of an important set of European elections in June of this year including Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary. Would you believe that Brussels appears to have got even worse in the four years since I’ve been there.

“We’ve now had not one but two venues cancel us holding this conference. Apparently the socialist mayor of Brussels doesn’t think this meeting should take place. Antifa and other organisations threatening to protest.”

As noted by the politician, the Claridge was the third space chosen for the conference.

The first space, Concert Noble, turned down the conference following a request by Socialist Brussels Mayor Philippe Close, it has been reported.

The second venue chosen for the conference was the Sofitel hotel but the event had to be moved following reported pressure by the liberal mayor of the Etterbeek municipality.

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