Merlin Entertainments is co-run by Blackstone Group, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, and Kirkbi, the investment arm of the Lego family.
The British theme park giant owns a wide range of attractions across the UK, including Alton Towers, Legoland Windsor, Madame Tussauds, Thorpe Park and Chessington World of Adventures.
A spokesperson said the enclosure “provides an excellent balance of water and land for the penguins which enables them to express their normal behaviours and there is space for them to ensure they have sufficient privacy”.
Naturalist and TV presenter Chris Packham CBE, who was also at the protest, rejected the venue’s claims and called it “a blight on the reputation of London’s attractions”.
“I could get some specialist architects to build you and me a house in an asbestos factory – we wouldn’t want to live in it, would we?” Packham said.