Reuters) - The British government tried on Thursday to play down a riot that marred a student protest in London a day earlier, but speculation grew that the trouble could be a sign of things to come as public spending is slashed.
Wednesday's largely peaceful march by tens of thousands of students opposed to planned increases in tuition fees was the first major protest directly linked to austerity measures announced by the coalition government last month.
On the fringes of the demonstration, a much smaller group of youths attacked an office complex which houses the headquarters of the ruling Conservative party, clashing with police, smashing windows, lighting fires and breaking into the building.
Student groups, police and politicians all blamed a small minority of troublemakers, but images of the riot dominated media coverage of the protest and fueled debate about whether anger over austerity measures would boil over again.
"I don't think it's a one-off. We expect more protests because some of these measures are going to be difficult," Conservative legislator Kwasi Kwarteng told Reuters......
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