A resurgence of widespread disorder of the sort that gripped the country last summer is possible as residents protest outside hotels housing asylum seekers, according to Hope Not Hate. The build-up of “anger, prejudice and misinformation” that led to rioting last year after the Southport murders is still there and could escalate again under the right circumstances, the anti-fascist organisation has warned. Hope Not Hate’s director of research, Joe Mulhall, said it is a “very, very febrile time”. He said: “People are still furious. In some cases, they’re more angry, we’re further into Labour Government, the economic conditions haven’t got better.
“Which means that when you have a trigger event, like an alleged horrifying event in Epping, all of those conditions are still there. That means that very, very quickly, they can escalate. That doesn’t mean that we’re going to see another summer of riots, but it does mean that it could have got worse, and something else could happen in the coming weeks.”
Extremist Expert Dr Daniel Allington from King’s College London told GB News he would be “pleasantly surprised” if the UK doesn’t “see riots anywhere … in the next month”.
“It is a likelihood, I hope it doesn’t happen, but I expect that it will,” he said. “The thing is, the secrecy has to end … people are not stupid.”
The Metropolitan Police has said that a protest against the use of a hotel to accommodate asylum seekers will see an “increased police presence.”
The force has imposed conditions on a protest and counter-protest outside the Thistle City Barbican Hotel in Islington, north London, on Saturday. A protest and counter-protest will also take place in Newcastle outside The New Bridge Hotel on Saturday.
The Metropolitan Police said the protest against the use of the Islington hotel was organized by local residents under the banner “Thistle Barbican needs to go—locals say no.”
A counter protest, organised by Stand Up To Racism and supported by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, as well as other groups including Finsbury Park Mosque and Islington Labour Party, will also take place.
Police said the anti-asylum hotel protest had been “endorsed by groups from outside the local community, which is likely to increase the number of people attending”.
Online groups that have supported the protest include “Patriots of Britain” and “Together for the Children.”
The Metropolitan Police said plans were in place to “respond to any protest activity in the vicinity of other hotels in London being used to accommodate asylum seekers”.