HUNDREDS of people have been evacuated from the building housing the Tory Party headquarters as a national demonstration against tuition fees descended into chaos.

A window was smashed at Millbank Tower in central London and eyewitnesses said students attempted to force their way into the building.

An estimated 50,000 students and lecturers were taking part in the demonstration against Government plans to cut university funding and charge students up to £9,000 per year in tuition fees from 2012.

Hundreds of Hampshire students from University of Southampton and Southampton Solent University joined the protest.

But University of Southampton Union President Billy Fitzjohn, said their students were away from the trouble.

He said: “We have heard there are pockets of bad behaviour going on up here but we are a long way back.

Demonstrators outside the Millbank Tower building in London

“Thousands of people have turned out making a lot of noise and showing the country we will not let the government get away with this. It will be a farce if we are not listened to.”

One eyewitness who works at Millbank Tower, who did not want to be named, described how workers were evacuated from Tory HQ.

He said: "The fire alarm went off and every one was evacuated from the building.

"There are hundreds of students outside. It looks like they are trying to get into the building.

"We were told that it was a false fire alarm because students were throwing smoke bombs into the building."

He added that around 300 workers gathered outside when the alarm went off.

Students lit a fire outside Millbank Tower, near to where protesters were due to gather for a rally.

Windows at the base of Millbank Tower - adjacent to Tory headquarters at 30 Millbank - were smashed in the protests.

The tower, which has 30 floors, is home to a number of Government agencies including the Environment Agency, the Audit Commission and the Parliamentary Ombudsman, as well as Conservative Party headquarters.