Latest news with #anti-migrant
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Police unit in England to monitor online signs of anti-migrant disorder
A national police unit will monitor social media for signs of anti-migrant disorder amid fears of a repeat of last summer's riots across England. Detectives from across the country will flag up the early signs of civil unrest under a beefed-up National Police Coordination Centre (NPoCC) in Westminster. The new intelligence team is a response to the anti-migrant disorder across England and Northern Ireland after the murder of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club in Southport last July. A fresh wave of demonstrations spread this weekend to Leeds, Norwich and Nottinghamshire after violent scenes outside a hotel housing asylum seekers in Epping, Essex, last week. The plan for a new police unit to track signs of such disorder were revealed on Sunday in a letter to MPs by the policing minister, Diana Johnson. Johnson said the Home Office was 'carefully considering' building a 'national internet intelligence investigations team' as part of the NPoCC, which shares briefings on 'nationally significant' demonstrations with police forces across England and Wales. She said: 'This team will provide a national capability to monitor social media intelligence and advise on its use to inform local operational decision-making. 'This will be a dedicated function at a national level for exploiting internet intelligence to help local forces manage public safety threats and risks. 'Funding for this capability beyond 2025–26 will need to be considered in line with future funding priorities, but I am confident that as a first step, this new central team will help build capability across forces to maximise social media intelligence.' Critics claimed the new unit was an attempt to 'police opinions' that would turn Britain into a 'surveillance state'. Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, told the Sunday Telegraph: 'This is the beginning of the state controlling free speech. It is sinister, dangerous and must be fought.' However, the Home Office strongly denied police would be monitoring social media for anti-migrant sentiment. 'These claims are completely untrue,' a Home Office spokesperson said. 'This new capability is not about monitoring what people say on their social media feeds – it is about equipping our police forces to respond more rapidly to the needs of the communities they serve, and enabling them to react in an agile way to real-time information about incidents and emergencies affecting those communities.' Inspectors have warned police forces were overwhelmed by the volume of social media content as unrest spread last summer from Southport to London, Sunderland, Rotherham, Middlesbrough, Belfast and other areas in the most serious nationwide disorder since 2011. A report by the police inspectorate earlier this year concluded the approach to online intelligence was 'disjointed and fragmented' and must be urgently overhauled. The disorder last summer started when misinformation spread about the identity of the 17-year-old who murdered three young girls – six-year-old, Bebe King; Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine; and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven – and stabbed several others in Southport on 29 July. Within hours of the atrocity, false claims circulated widely that the attack was terror-related and perpetrated by an asylum seeker who had recently arrived in the UK on a small boat. A judge took the unprecedented step of attempting to quell the unrest by lifting an anonymity order allowing the attacker, Axel Rudakubana, to be named, while Merseyside police took the unusual step of confirming he was born in Cardiff, contrary to online claims. However, rioters targeted a mosque in Southport barely 24 hours after the murders before violent clashes, largely organised on apps such as Telegram, spread to other parts of England and Belfast. The small policing unit NPoCC took over responsibility for monitoring anti-migrant disorder from counter-terror policing in 2020, yet inspectors found it incorrectly assessed the threat of unrest last summer as 'low'. One intelligence officer said: 'We need to keep an eye on this [serious disorder] all the time. When we stop, we get bitten.'
The Independent
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Police unit to monitor social media for anti-migrant posts in bid to stop riots
An elite police unit, the National Internet Intelligence Investigations team, is being formed to monitor social media for anti-migrant posts and early signs of civil unrest. Operating from the National Police Coordination Centre in Westminster, the unit will comprise officers from forces across England and Wales. The initiative aims to provide national support for local police commanders in responding to online threats, following last year's riots and the spread of protests outside asylum hotels. Policing minister Dame Diana Johnson confirmed the unit's establishment, acting on recommendations for a nationally coordinated social media monitoring capability. Critics, including Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, have labelled the plan as "disturbing" and a free-speech infringement, accusing the government of prioritising surveillance over frontline policing.
The Sun
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Elite team of cops to monitor anti-migrant social media posts to clamp down on unrest as critics blast ‘disturbing' move
AN elite team of cops will be tasked with monitoring social media for anti-migrant posts. Detectives are being handpicked from forces across the UK to take part in the new programme amid fears of rioting as the small boats crisis escalates. 3 3 The division, overseen by the Home Office, will look to "maximise social media intelligence" gathering after forces were slammed for their response to last year's unrest. Protests outside asylum hotels is continuing to heat up, with crowds gathering yesterday in the likes of Norwich, Leeds and Bournemouth - and more demonstrations planned today. Deputy PM Angela Rayner warned the Cabinet last week that the Government must step in to address "real concerns" about immigration. However, critics have labelled the social media policing plans as "disturbing" and questioned if it further restricts freedom of speech. The National Internet Intelligence Investigations team, will work out of the National Police Coordination Centre (NPoCC) in Westminster. The NPoCC provides the central planning for forces across the UK in terms of "nationally significant protests" and civil disorder. And enforced lockdown rules during the Covid pandemic. Plans for the new unit were spotted in a letter to MPs by Dame Diana Johnson, policing minister. Lucy Connolly fury It comes after Tory councillor Raymond Connolly's wife Lucy was jailed for 31 months after posting comments on her X account just hours after evil Axel Rudakubana murdered three girls in the Merseyside town on July 29 last year. Ms Connolly, 41, shared a call to arms following the deaths of Bebe King, six, nine-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, last July. 16 arrested after protests outside Epping migrant hotel as ring of steel ramps up around TWO asylum seeker centres Posts wrongly claimed monster Rudakubana was a Muslim asylum seeker when he was actually born in Cardiff and raised Christian. Ms Connelly's punishment sparked fury across the political divide. Furious Brits noted that despite the former child minder quickly deleting her post, she remains in prison while paedos such as Hugh Edwards escaped jail time. Referring to the social media cops, Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, told the Daily Telegraph: 'Two-tier Keir can't police the streets, so he's trying to police opinions instead. "They're setting up a central team to monitor what you post, what you share, what you think, because deep down they know the public don't buy what they're selling." He added Labour are no longer "pretending" to fix Britain and are now "trying to mute it" - turning the country into a "surveillance state". Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said: 'This is the beginning of the state controlling free speech. It is sinister, dangerous and must be fought. Reform UK will do just that.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Elite police unit to monitor social media for anti-migrant posts
An elite unit of detectives is being convened to monitor social media for anti-migrant posts. The National Internet Intelligence Investigations team will operate from the National Police Coordination Centre (NPoCC) in Westminster, drawing officers from forces across England and Wales. The unit will be tasked with flagging early signs of potential civil unrest and 'maximizing social media intelligence', after last year's riots exposed gaps in police planning. Home Office ministers say it will give local commanders national support to spot and respond to online threats. The move comes as protests outside asylum hotels spread across the country. On Saturday, crowds gathered in Norwich, Leeds and Bournemouth to demand action, with further demonstrations planned. Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner warned the Cabinet that ministers must tackle 'the real concerns that people have' about immigration to prevent disorder. Critics seized on the plan, branding it 'disturbing' and warning of free‑speech infringements. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp accused the Government of trying 'to police what you post, what you share, what you think' because it 'can't police the streets' itself. 'Labour have stopped pretending to fix Britain and started trying to mute it,' he added, accusing ministers of favouring surveillance over frontline policing. The NPoCC, which led the nationwide police response to Covid lockdowns under Operation Talla, will co‑ordinate the new unit. Details of the unit emerged in a letter to MPs from Dame Diana Johnson, the policing minister, published before parliament's summer recess and were revealed by The Telegraph. She confirmed ministers were acting on recommendations from the Commons Home Affairs Committee and His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, both of which urged a nationally co‑ordinated social‑media monitoring capability. Dame Diana wrote that the new team 'will provide a national capability to monitor social media intelligence and advise on its use to inform local operational decision‑making,' helping forces to manage public‑safety threats and risks. While initial funding runs until 2026, she said future support would depend on spending priorities. A Home Office spokesman said: 'This new team will help police forces track real-time information and protect communities from incidents and emergencies before they escalate. 'As part of the government's Plan for Change, we are restoring visible, neighbourhood policing, focused on the public's priorities, including halving knife crime and violence against women, clamping down on theft and anti-social behaviour, and ensuring that people can feel safe in their own high streets.'
The Independent
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Elite police unit to monitor social media for anti-migrant posts
An elite unit of detectives is being convened to monitor social media for anti-migrant posts. The National Internet Intelligence Investigations team will operate from the National Police Coordination Centre (NPoCC) in Westminster, drawing officers from forces across England and Wales. The unit will be tasked with flagging early signs of potential civil unrest and 'maximizing social media intelligence', after last year's riots exposed gaps in police planning. Home Office ministers say it will give local commanders national support to spot and respond to online threats. The move comes as protests outside asylum hotels spread across the country. On Saturday, crowds gathered in Norwich, Leeds and Bournemouth to demand action, with further demonstrations planned. Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner warned the Cabinet that ministers must tackle 'the real concerns that people have' about immigration to prevent disorder. Critics seized on the plan, branding it 'disturbing' and warning of free‑speech infringements. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp accused the Government of trying 'to police what you post, what you share, what you think' because it 'can't police the streets' itself. 'Labour have stopped pretending to fix Britain and started trying to mute it,' he added, accusing ministers of favouring surveillance over frontline policing. The NPoCC, which led the nationwide police response to Covid lockdowns under Operation Talla, will co‑ordinate the new unit. Details of the unit emerged in a letter to MPs from Dame Diana Johnson, the policing minister, published before parliament's summer recess. She confirmed ministers were acting on recommendations from the Commons Home Affairs Committee and His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, both of which urged a nationally co‑ordinated social‑media monitoring capability. Dame Diana wrote that the new team 'will provide a national capability to monitor social media intelligence and advise on its use to inform local operational decision‑making,' helping forces to manage public‑safety threats and risks. While initial funding runs until 2026, she said future support would depend on spending priorities. A Home Office spokesman said: 'This new team will help police forces track real-time information and protect communities from incidents and emergencies before they escalate. 'As part of the government's Plan for Change, we are restoring visible, neighbourhood policing, focused on the public's priorities, including halving knife crime and violence against women, clamping down on theft and anti-social behaviour, and ensuring that people can feel safe in their own high streets.'
