The Labour government’s swift response to the UK’s worst riots since 2011 has calmed the violence, but the underlying causes remain unaddressed.
While immigrants were the target, the causes range from outright old-fashioned racism to socio-economic exclusion, most evident in towns and cities with few industrial opportunities.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer now faces the trio of challenges: unite a divided nation, attract foreign investment, and tackle the deeper issues that threaten the UK’s stability and global reputation.
Spreading lies
The UK’s worst race riots in years began after far-right activists using social media exploiting the murder of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed club in the northern town of Southport on 29 July.
These activists wrongly attributed their deaths to a Muslim immigrant. In fact, it was a UK-born 17-year-old who does not appear to have been of the Islamic faith.
Still, the lies spread faster than the facts, and anti-immigrant violence raged in several cities, including the two biggest, London and Manchester.
Immigrant communities and asylum seeker accommodation sites were targeted, as were mosques, notably the Abdullah Quilliam Mosque in Liverpool, and a hotel in Rotherham housing asylum seekers was almost torched.
A tough response
Labour had been in government for less than a month when the riots broke out. Their response, under Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, was muscular and effective.
Keen to show leadership by tackling the riots head on, he cut short his summer holiday and took charge of the response. He deployed riot police and instructed the courts to prosecute rioters immediately. This quickly quelled the protests.