Keir Starmer announces new anti-violence unit as police prepare for more riots
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Sir Keir Starmer has announced the creation of a new national police unit to tackle violence as he vowed to “end” recent unrest on Britain’s streets led by far-right “thugs”.
The prime minister summoned senior police chiefs to Downing Street on Thursday before announcing the move, following a second night of violence sparked by a mass knife attack by an attacker in Southport.
Police forces across the UK are preparing for further far-right protests at the weekend, with online protests planned in Manchester and Middlesbrough among other cities.
The new unit will look at treating rioters like football hooligans, Starmer announced on Thursday. The unit will look at issuing criminal conduct orders that could restrict their movements “before they can even get on a train – just like we do with football hooligans”, he added.
It will also promote better intelligence sharing between police forces and wider deployment of facial recognition technology.
Starmer criticised the actions of “a tiny, senseless minority in our society” and thanked police officers who had “taken a stand against intimidation and violence” since the first knife attack on Monday.
The prime minister acknowledged that the challenge ahead was “clearly driven by far-right hatred”, but added that the new unit would tackle “any outbreak of violence regardless of the apparent cause or motivation”.
Starmer’s comments came hours after the Southport attacker was named as Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, who was born in the UK to parents who emigrated from Rwanda.
Judge Andrew Menary lifted the reporting restrictions at a hearing at Liverpool Crown Court, where Rudakubana was remanded in custody on charges of murder, attempted murder and possession of a knife.
A 17-year-old boy was arrested on Monday near the scene of a mass stabbing in northwest England, the worst mass casualty incident involving children in Britain in decades.
Three girls aged six, seven and nine were killed in the attack on a Taylor Swift-themed dance class, and 10 others, mostly children, were injured, sparking a series of violent protests.
Rudakubana’s name, which could not previously be released due to her age, has become the subject of frenzied speculation and misinformation on social media.
Some posts linked him to Islam or suggested he had recently arrived in the UK by boat as an asylum seeker.
Noting that Rudakubana turns 18 on August 7, Menary said: “Continuing to suppress full coverage will have the disadvantage of enabling others to spread misinformation spontaneously.”
In his comments on Thursday, Starmer told major social media companies that online violence was also “a criminal” and “going on in your premises”, as he warned that the government would “take all necessary action to keep our streets safe”.
Asked what penalties he would be willing to impose on social media companies that fail to remove disinformation that fuels unrest, Starmer said there needed to be a discussion about striking the “right balance”.
Rudakubana’s defence and trial preparation hearing has been set for Friday 25 October at Liverpool Crown Court.
Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy said that while the charges marked “a significant milestone… this remains an ongoing investigation and we continue to work with partners from Lancashire Police and North West Counter Terrorism Policing”.
More than 100 protesters were arrested during clashes outside the British prime minister’s official residence and offices on Wednesday night, Metropolitan Police said.
Some protesters threw fireworks and bottles at police, chanting anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim slogans similar to those used in Southport on Tuesday night. More than 50 police officers were injured when protesters attacked a local mosque and set fire to police cars and other vehicles.
There were also major riots on Wednesday night in Hartlepool, a town in northeastern England, where police carrying riot shields were confronted by crowds of protesters throwing objects.
