MPs have renounced the actions of vegan activists.

A member of the audience at a People’s Parliament event at the University of Brighton on Saturday asked the city’s MPs how they felt about the vegan activist group that has staged disruptive protests.

Brighton Pavilion MP Caroline Lucas said: “I do not know these groups.”

Referring to Dylan Roffey, the vegan activist found guilty of assault after spitting at a woman she believed was wearing a fur coat, Ms Lucas added: “The bottom line for me is that all protest must be peaceful and spitting at people isn’t peaceful.”

Kemptown MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle said: “I do know about the vegan group and I think their activities are entirely unhelpful.

“I spent many years running a vegan cafe in Bradford. If these sort of activities happen in the name of veganism then it is an embarrassment to veganism.

“I have no time for these particular vegan activists.”