Southport riots, two-tier policing claims rejected and an information vacuum
Plus: The latest headlines from across the town
Hello and welcome to the 27th edition of The Southport Lead.
Today’s edition takes a look at the conclusion of a group of MPs’ investigation into disorder which occurred in the wake of the murders of three young girls in Southport last year.
The violent scenes saw a mosque targeted with bricks and flaming objects, police officers attacked, and vehicles set alight as thugs hijacked the killings and ignored the direct pleas of one grieving mother to carry out a violent rampage.
Today’s edition takes a look at two of the findings of that report - relating to claims of two-tier policing and the release of information about the killer after the attack.
Two-tier policing claims rejected as MPs call for contempt of court law reforms
By Jamie Lopez. Additional reporting by David Humphreys
The so-called ‘two tier policing’ conspiracy was rejected by a cross-party group of MPs investigating riots in Southport and disorder across the country.
Claims of unfair policing were made last year when the Government pledged to issue quick and harsh punishment to those involved in violent disorder. It came after violent yobs attacked Southport Mosque using bricks and set fire to a police van in the wake of the murders of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice da Silva Aguiar.
Shortly after more than 1,000 people gathered at a vigil to remember the young girls, people began making their way towards the mosque on the basis of untrue claims the killer was Muslim. It led to a shameful night in which a police van was set on fire, officers were attacked, and the mosque was pelted with bricks with terrified people trapped inside.
Other properties and vehicles were damaged and more than 50 police officers were injured. Some of those dealing with the riots were the same people who had responded to the murders 24 hours earlier and some had to take themselves to hospital as a result of the injuries they’d sustained.
A Home Affairs Committee of Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs was convened to investigate the disorder which struck not only in Southport on July 30 but also in London, Hartlepool, Aldershot, Sunderland, Hull, Liverpool, Blackpool, Stoke-on-Trent, Rotherham, Tamworth, Middlesbrough and Plymouth over the following days. These secondary incidents include an arson attack at a hotel housing asylum seekers.
The committee’s report was published this week and issues a series of recommendations relating to information disclosure, police officer retention and support, and social media monitoring.
Addressing the violent scenes, the report stated: “This was not protest. Those participating in disorder were not policed more strongly because of their supposed political views but because they were throwing missiles, assaulting police officers and committing arson.
“It was disgraceful to see the police officers who bore the brunt of this violence being undermined by baseless claims of ‘two-tier policing’.”
The two-tier conspiracy was popularised in the wake of the riots and was based on the supposition that those who took part were treated more harshly than those in other occasions such as the Black Lives Matters which took place following the murder of George Floyd in the US.
It led to the Prime Minister being given the nickname “Two-tier Keir” and was popularised by the likes of far-right thug Tommy Robinson, Elon Musk and actor and sacked-GB News presenter Laurence Fox. It then became frequently used in right-wing media and on social media.
However, the committee found the key factor in the police’s response was the level of violence being used by those involved in the disorder.
In his evidence, Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist of the Metropolitan Police said that two-tier policing had become “a bit of a catchphrase for people who want to criticise without
meaningfully engaging” while others explained how it had a negative effect on those trying to police the protests and disorder.
The committee concluded: “The right to protest is fundamental in our democracy and we would take seriously any evidence that peaceful protest was being suppressed based on the political views expressed.
“However, we have seen no evidence that this was the case during the summer. Far from being evidence of ‘two-tier policing’, the policing response last summer was entirely appropriate given the levels of violence and criminality that were on display.
“It was disgraceful to see unsubstantiated commentary about ‘two-tier policing’ undermining the efforts of police officers who served bravely in the face of violence.”
Within the same report, the panel of MPs concluded that a “lack of information” published in the wake of the murders created a “vacuum where misinformation was able to grow”.
In their 41-page report, MPs said after the three girls were killed “the chosen sites of protests, such as asylum hotels, were at best controversial and at worst an incitement to violence.”
Much was made of how Merseyside Police responded to the attacks and what information it could share with the public. Owing to Axel Rudakubana being under 18 at the time of the murders, the force was unable to publish his identity immediately.
This allowed misinformation to circulate online, including one suggestion that an asylum seeker by the name of Ali-Al-Shakati – which was invented – had arrived in the UK by boat in 2023. One tweet including this information was posted at just before 5pm on July 29 and retweeted several thousand times.
The claim was subsequently reported by the artificial news website ‘Channel3Now’ an hour later, causing it to spread further still. A day later when disorder began, Merseyside Police confirmed that the information circulating on social media was false, but were still unable to confirm the suspect’s real identity for legal reasons.
On the evening of July 31, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was asked for advice on a press statement which confirmed the Rudakubana’s religion. While on a national level, there were no concerns about this being released, Serena Kennedy, Merseyside Police Chief Constable said it was the “very clear view” of the local CPS that information about the religion should not be included, and moreover that this was “because of the impact on the criminal justice process.”
She told MPs it was this “direction” which meant the information about the suspect’s religion was not published.
Police forces also told the committee that social media was a significant factor in the spread of disorder as it was used to disseminate information about protests and other action. According to the report, Chief Constable Kennedy was not able to say whether she thought publishing information about the suspect’s religion would have prevented further disorder, adding that her main motivation in publishing the information was to try to protect Muslim communities, rather than to prevent disorder.
A lack of trust in institutions including the police made it difficult to explain to communities why this information was not released, MPs were told. Emily Spurrell, Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner and chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, told the committee: “When you are trying to go out and explain to the public […] why certain information is not being put in the public domain to protect that process [the judicial process], we were coming at it from a point where they did not trust what we were saying.
“[We] need to look at how we rebuild that trust in all the different sectors so people know that they are going to get the right service when they want it. Then when we do have to explain to them or make difficult decisions, they understand why that is happening.”
The committee concluded Merseyside Police had been left in a “very difficult position” given legal restrictions on identifying Rudakubana and the need to withhold certain information in order to protect the trial. They said: “The inconsistent advice from the CPS over the publication of information about the suspect’s religion was particularly regrettable and hampered the police response.
“It cannot be determined whether the disorder could have been prevented had more information been published. However, the lack of information published in the wake of the murders of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice da Silva Aguiar created a vacuum where misinformation was able to grow, further undermining public confidence.”
News in headlines
Imam welcomes Southport report and says misinformation spreaders 'should face force of law' (ITV)
Trust awarded £850,000 funding to install solar panels at Southport Hospital and Ormskirk Hospital (Stand Up For Southport)
Dad's plea as he says 'I'm terrified. This is a parent's worst nightmare' (Liverpool Echo)
Thanks for reading this mid-week edition of The Southport Lead, I’ll be back in your inbox on Sunday morning. In the meantime if there’s anything you think I should be looking into then drop me a line southport@thelead.uk
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Jamie & The Southport Lead team