The Telegraph, on UK Politics, 8 November 2026

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Far Right and Muslims clash in fresh riots

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Nick Gutteridge Chief Political Correspondent. Martin Evans Crime Editor. Neil Johnston

Published 04 August 2024 11:43pm BST

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!Asian men join the disturbance in Bolton on Sunday

Asian men join the disturbance in Bolton on Sunday Credit: Phil Taylor / SWNS

Nick Gutteridge Chief Political Correspondent. Martin Evans Crime Editor. Neil Johnston

Published 04 August 2024 11:43pm BST

Violent clashes broke out between far-Right rioters and Muslim counter-protesters on Sunday in a sixth day of unrest on Britain’s streets.

The disorder that has spread since the Southport killings showed no sign of abating over the weekend amid escalating community tensions.

In Rotherham, a hotel used to house asylum seekers was set ablaze, and another in Tamworth was targeted by anti-immigration protesters.

In Bolton, Muslim groups shouting “Allahu Akbar” clashed with far-Right rioters.

A mob in Middlesbrough shouted “smash the p—s” and “there ain’t no black in the Union Jack” while targeting the homes of migrants, while footage on social media from elsewhere in the city appeared to show groups of Asian men attacking white men.

In an emergency address from Downing Street, Sir Keir Starmer warned the rioters would regret taking part and vowed to do “whatever it takes to bring these thugs to justice as quickly as possible”.

!Police stand guard against counter-protesters

Police stand guard against counter-protesters Credit: Reuters/Belinda Jiao

He said: “The police will be making arrests. Individuals will be held on remand. Charges will follow. And convictions will follow.

“I guarantee you will regret taking part in this disorder. Whether directly or those whipping up this action online, and then running away themselves.”

He added: “This is not protest. I won’t shy away from calling this what it is – far-Right thuggery.”

The Prime Minister was warned not to be “selective” in his response to the groups involved in the disorder.

Robert Jenrick, a frontrunner to become the next Tory leader, said the Prime Minister must not show any “squeamishness or selectivity” in tackling all those responsible.

He said the streets should be flooded with tens of thousands of police, with all leave cancelled and officers diverted from unaffected areas to riot hotspots.

“The ringleaders should be arrested, swiftly prosecuted and jailed for the longest possible time,” the former immigration minister told The Telegraph.

“Groups that gather in town or city centres that become violent must be immediately dispersed, with violent thugs arrested.

“If force is needed to achieve this, it should be used. There must be no squeamishness or selectivity whatsoever to robust law enforcement.”

‘Law breaking is not the answer’

Nadhim Zahawi, the former Chancellor, also warned that there must be zero tolerance for anyone taking part in riots, including those “taking matters into their own hands”.

He said: “There needs to be a clear, consistent message for all those rioting, even if they think they are ‘taking matters into their own hands’; law breaking is not the answer and there must be a zero tolerance response.

“The Government needs to realise that there is legitimate frustration and pain felt in communities across the country, with recent murders and other violence becoming emblematic of people feeling that their society is becoming unrecognisable. But the violence must be punished.

“Similarly, the Government needs to say to those thugs who hijack Islam that it will not be tolerant of intolerance. If you settle in Britain like I did, you respect its values and traditions, integrate and be proud of this country, otherwise you must go somewhere else.”

Protests broke out in the wake of the Southport killings after false information was spread online that the suspect was an asylum seeker.

On Sunday, around 700 rioters descended on the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham, which has previously been used to house asylum seekers.

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After smashing several ground floor windows, the attackers then attempted to set the hotel on fire, torching bins and then using them to blockade the exits.

Mosques have been targeted on previous days of the unrest and the Home Office on Sunday announced that extra police and security forces will be deployed to protect mosques after they were targeted by far-Right rioters.

Amid escalating community tensions, in Bolton there were scuffles on the town’s streets between anti-immigration protesters and Muslim counter demonstrators.

By early afternoon the counter-protesters, who were mostly Asian and many in Muslim dress, outnumbered the anti-immigration protest by two to one.

Footage on social media also appeared to show groups of Asian men attacking white males in Middlesbrough.

!Counter-protesters outnumbered the anti-immigration protest by two to one

Counter-protesters outnumbered the anti-immigration protest by two to one Credit: Belinda Jiao

A reporter for Channel 4 News said groups of Asian and white men were on the streets of the town “looking for trouble”.

Tommy Robinson, who is the subject of an arrest warrant issued by a judge after failing to turn up to court last Monday, was reported to be stoking the riots through his social media posts while on holiday in Cyprus. He denies encouraging or orchestrating violence.

Sir Keir is under increasing pressure to bring the violence under control.

In his statement on Sunday, he opened the door to tougher prison sentences for rioters and announced suspects will be held on remand and locked up immediately after being charged, mirroring action to tackle the 2011 riots when he was Director of Public Prosecutions.

The Prime Minister will lead a meeting of the Government’s emergency Cobra committee on Monday alongside Cabinet ministers and senior police figures.

However doubts have been raised over whether there are enough jail places available for Sir Keir to mount a 2011-style response to the unrest.

Labour inherited a system that is running at almost full capacity, with only around 700 spaces available in male prisons around the country.

Around 150 arrests have been made across England since Saturday evening, the National Police Chiefs’ Council said, with that number expected to rise.

Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, on Sunday night warned rioters they would face a “reckoning” and that police have the Government’s backing to take the “strongest possible action”.

Writing in The Times, she said: “Make no mistake, there will be a reckoning for the individuals who took part in this violence, those who whipped them up on social media and in online chat forums and those who have felt emboldened by this moment to stir up racial hatred.”

Cassia Rowland, a researcher at the Institute for Government, said locking up all the rioters was “not an option” unless more prisoners are released.

She said: “The situation in prisons is desperate. We simply don’t have the prison spaces available for mass arrests like we saw in 2011.”

The Government has announced that, as of Sept 10, thousands of prisoners will be freed when they have served 40pc of their sentence to free up cells.

But that date has been written into law, meaning the scheme could only be brought forward if Parliament were recalled from recess to amend the legislation.

Government sources insisted that internal modelling of prisoner numbers showed there would be enough space to lock up all the rioters.

No 10 was forced to scotch rumours that Sir Keir was planning to go on holiday on Monday insisting he would be working at Downing Street all week.

The Prime Minister is now facing demands to recall Parliament so that MPs can debate his response, as Lord Cameron did at the same point during the 2011 unrest.

Sir Iain Duncan Smith, a former Tory leader, added that Sir Keir “needs to bring people back to explain what he’s doing”.

Meanwhile officials were forced to dampen down speculation they could call the Army in if police forces are stretched to breaking point in the coming days.

Humza Yousaf, a former Scottish first minister, and Tobias Ellwood, an ex-Armed Forces minister, were among those urging Sir Keir to use the military.

Mr Yousaf warned the UK was experiencing “far-Right race riots” which amounted to “pogroms against the Muslim community, against people of colour”.

Neil Basu, a former assistant commissioner at Scotland Yard, said the riots had made him feel afraid to be black for the first time in decades.

He said: “I was born a few weeks before Enoch Powell made a speech that changed my parents’ lives. I am the son of immigrants and I am not a white person.

“I spent 30 years as a police officer feeling pretty secure in my ability to handle myself, I don’t feel like that this week and that is a terrible thing for a man in his 57th year to say.

“But I remember growing up in the 1970s, I watched the National Front march down streets, and this feels very much like that.”

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