UK riots show western leaders must build a stronger foundation for diversity

Anti-immigration protesters outside a hotel being used to house asylum seekers in Rotherham, England. Getty

The wanton violence perpetrated by far-right rioters across several areas of Britain over the past six days has come to overshadow the purported cause of the unrest – the murder of three young girls in the English city of Southport on July 29. Despite pleas from the bereaved families for these troublemakers to stop attacking the police, property and minorities, the rampage continued. It is among the worst disorder seen on British streets since the London riots of 2011.

The riots of 2024 should be described accurately – they are neither “protests” nor “demonstrations”, but pogroms. In several smaller cities, racist and anti-Muslim mobs have been seen roaming side streets looking for targets. Such criminality demands a swift response. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer – a former top prosecutor – reportedly plans to mirror elements of the government’s response to the London riots more than a decade ago. Back then, measures included drafting in more police officers and fast-tracking court cases.

But the situation is complex; this unrest did not spring from nowhere. It is the result of a knot of multi-layered problems that include an emboldened far right, misinformation and propaganda on social media, the exploitation of genuine grievances and mistrust of the police in some of Britain’s working-class communities. In a globalised world, the UK’s challenges with migration have not manifested in a vacuum, and unresolved conflicts continue to fuel a steady flow of irregular migrants to European shores – including those of Britain.

In the short term, a robust but nuanced strategy to defuse this volatile situation is needed. This early test for the UK’s new government should combine effective policework against rioters and the opportunists who incite them with an acknowledgement of the fears – often distorted – than can coalesce around migration. There are signs that such an approach is taking shape; in a televised address Mr Starmer told rioters they would "regret taking part in this disorder, either directly or those whipping up this disorder online", correctly identifying the role of digital agitators.

Many western societies are experiencing a surge in far-right fear mongering that often results in hostility towards racial and religious minorities, as well as migrants and asylum seekers. In the UK, extremists have been quick to capitalise on a sense of grievance among some sections of the British public that is amplified and exploited by political and social media bad actors, and thrives when it is not engaged with and defused by the authorities. Many of these same extremists are shrewd enough to avoid prosecution themselves by using loopholes in the law or carefully wording their statements, while the footsoldiers gain criminal records.

The reality is that Britain already has a relatively strict immigration and asylum policy. On paper, the country is not an easy place to move to for long periods. Enforcement of Britain’s immigration rules, however, is another matter. The country’s politicians, Home Office and law enforcement agencies have struggled for years to make the system robust enough to deal with surges in asylum seekers and prevent irregular migration without also punishing those who enter the UK legally for work or to join their families.

In search of quick fixes, too many of the country’s politicians have often opted for blunt instruments, such as restrictions on lower-income Britons marrying foreign spouses or the previous government’s risible plan to deport failed asylum seekers to Rwanda. Some have opted for radicalising, dog-whistle politics that endangers not just immigrants, but British-born minorities, too.

These phenomena may be particularly pronounced in the UK, but they have been repeated in some form or another across much of Europe as the West’s migration mismanagement continues. It is time for western politicians to see the bigger picture and take steps to build a stronger foundation for the diversity their societies have benefited from so much.

In Britain, whatever the government’s response is, it must come quickly; more protests are being arranged, and those involved have had a sample of what violence mixed with impunity feels like. A British government confronted by the country’s own toxic mix of societal pressures and far-right opportunists should actually urgently and decisively.