Starmer tells police to stay on 'high alert' during emergency Cobra meeting after days of rioting
Prime Minister Keir Starmer told police to stay on "high alert" during a Cobra meeting on Thursday
Some 20 potential gatherings and three counter-protests are planned for Thursday, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
More than a quarter of people so far charged by police with offences linked to the riots are under the age of 21, figures show
Anti-immigration demonstrators were few and far between on Wednesday, with large numbers of counter-protesters taking to the streets instead
Courts will hand out more sentences to individuals involved in the past week of unrest, after several were issued jail sentences on Wednesday
The Northern Ireland Assembly has been recalled to discuss violent disorder in Belfast
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has urged police to stay on "high alert" as he chaired an emergency Cobra meeting on Thursday in the wake of violence on the streets of the UK.
The prime minister thanked the police and wider criminal justice system at his third such meeting since unrest broke out last week.
He also said there was no doubt that levels of policing in the right places and swift justice over the past week, including sentencing, have acted as a deterrent to disorder.
Following a visit to a mosque in Solihull earlier on Thursday, the PM said: “The most important lesson is for those involving themselves in disorder, because what we’ve seen is that those who’ve been arrested - now numbered in their hundreds, many have been charged, some already in court, and now a number of individuals sentenced to terms of imprisonment, that is a very important message to those involved in disorder.
“And I say it again, anybody involving themselves in disorder, whatever they claim as their motive, will feel the full force of the law."
Some 20 potential gatherings and three counter-protests were planned for Thursday, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
More than 160 demonstrations were planned for Wednesday but only about 36 took place with “minimal disorder and only a handful of arrests”, the body said.
The total number of arrests made after violence erupted in the wake of the Southport stabbings now stands at 483.
The Crown Prosecution Service said 149 people have been charged in relation to unrest across the country over the past eight days.
Figures show that more than a quarter of those charged are under the age of 21, with 39 under 21-year-olds charged in connection with the riots.
The number includes three people under the age of 16, including a 14-year-old boy charged by Merseyside Police with violent disorder.
Some of those arrested and charged for their involvement in this week's riots have already been sentenced, after having their cases fast-tracked.
William Nelson Morgan, 69, was sentenced for violent disorder and possession of an offensive weapon at Liverpool Crown Court after a hearing was fast-tracked following his guilty pleas at the city’s magistrates’ court on Monday. He's believed to be the oldest person, so far, charged with an offence relating to the recent unrest.
Body-worn footage showed the widower telling officers to get off him as they attempted to arrest him. At one point he said “I’m f****** 70” and an officer responded: “Well, why are you at a f****** riot?”
John O’Malley, 43, appeared alongside him in the dock and was also jailed for two years and eight months after admitting violent disorder in Southport.
Meanwhile, Steven Mailen, 54, of Arch Court, Hartlepool, was described as “one of the main instigators” of a large-scale disturbance on Murray Street.
His partner Ryan Sheers, 28, of Powlett Road, Hartlepool, was bitten on the hip by a police dog during the incident.
A judge said Mailen and Sheers were “at the very forefront of the mob”, and tried to push their way through a police cordon
The court heard the pair had been at the bingo where they had been drinking. They then went home and continued drinking and then walked to the shop for more alcohol when they came across the disturbance.
It comes as Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley praised communities and police for their "show of unity" on Wednesday night after fears of widespread far-right unrest did not materialise.
Many towns and cities across the country boarded up shops over fears of more violence following a week of violent disorder which started in Southport, Merseyside, on July 30.
But in most places, anti-immigration demonstrators were few and far between, with large numbers of counter-protesters taking to the streets instead.
Reflecting on the police operation, Rowley said: "I'm really pleased with how it went.
"We put thousands of officers on the street and I think the show of force from the police and the show of unity from the community together defeated the challenges that we've seen."
He said the force had been carrying out dawn raids on Thursday morning in connection with last week's disorder in Whitehall.
Rowley also revealed on Wednesday that police forces had changed their tactics in recent days, marshalling more officers and brigading them at strategic locations around the country.
Approximately 6,000 specialist officers will be at the ready by the end of the week, part of a so-called “standing army” of police announced by the prime minister on Monday.
These officers were taken away from their regular duties to deal with ongoing disorder.
At least 191 police officers are thought to have been assaulted so far in the unrest, resulting in 100 being injured and 66 being taken to hospital, according to data gathered from 29 out of the 43 forces in England and Wales.
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"We all need to be able to thrive in the communities we live and work in," Rowley added.
"It was fantastic to see communities proudly taking the streets and saying, 'we're against racism, we're against violence', and that was massively successful."
The police were understood to have been preparing for as many as 100 planned far-right protests on Wednesday night.
Large numbers of anti-racism demonstrators took to the streets in various cities in response, including 8,000 in Walthamstow, 7,000 in Bristol and 2,000 in Liverpool, according to Stand Up to Racism.
Similar numbers were seen in Brighton and Newcastle, the group said.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed two large anti-racism protests took part in Waltham Forest and Finchley on Wednesday night, but said they passed without incident or disruption.
Officers faced anti-social behaviour in Croydon from a small group but the incident was not believed to be related to protest, the force added.
Ten people were arrested for offences including assault on an emergency worker, breaching a section 35 dispersal order, going equipped for arson and violent disorder.
Elsewhere, one arrest was made near the site of a protest in Blackpool, Somerset and Avon police arrested a person after a brick was thrown at a police vehicle in Bristol.
More than 400 people have been arrested so far for involvement in riots and disorder following a knife attack on a Taylor Swift dance class in Southport, which left three children dead.
Misinformation spread online about the identity of the 17-year-old suspect, Axel Rudakubana, including false information about his name, and claims that he was an asylum seeker.
Addressing those considering taking part in future disorder, Rowley warned on Thursday: "You're not going to get away with this.
"You're on body worn video, you're on CCTV, you're on national TV, you're going to get arrested, and you're going to prison for years."
Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland, Stormont members of the Legislative Assembly are set to return from summer recess to discuss recent scenes of violent disorder on the streets of Belfast.
Executive ministers will gather at Stormont Castle on Thursday morning before the Northern Ireland Assembly sitting at noon.
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