Starmer to chair Cobra meeting as police brace for 20 more riot related events

The Prime Minister will chair another Cobra meeting with law enforcement officials on Thursday afternoon, as police brace for 20 potential further gatherings.

Sir Keir Starmer will hold the third high-level gathering of its kind in the last week, after threats of further disorder largely failed to materialise on Wednesday evening.

The meeting comes as 20 potential gatherings and three counter-protests are planned for Thursday evening, 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 relating to violent disorder following the Southport killings now stands at 483, the NPCC said.

The policing body also confirmed on Thursday afternoon that 149 charges had been brought so far, with the figure set to “continue to rise significantly”.

Shops were boarded up in many towns and cities over fears of rioting on Wednesday after a week of disorder.

Further violence was largely curtailed, but the Prime Minister insisted it was “important that we don’t let up”.

Some rioters have been handed jail terms of more than two years, while others face charges relating to disorder across the country.

Following a visit to a mosque in Solihull, he told broadcasters: “Now it’s important that we don’t let up here and that’s why later on today I will have another Cobra meeting with law enforcement, with senior police officers, to make sure that we reflect on last night but also plan for the coming days.”

Sir Keir said Wednesday night’s events turned out “much better than was expected”, and suggested the additional deployment of police officers and the quick sentencing of people involved in disorder were the reasons riots did not materialise.

“We were able to demonstrate the criminal justice system working speedily, so yesterday we saw the sentencing of individuals who had been involved in disorder days ago, some of them getting sentences as long as three years.

“That sent a very powerful message,” the Prime Minister said.

In the West Midlands, Sir Keir also held a roundtable discussion with Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker, and members of the Muslim community, and met police officers who attended recent disorder.

Metropolitan Police chief Sir Mark Rowley had earlier suggested the “show of force from the police” and “the show of unity from communities” together “defeated the challenges that we’ve seen”.

He also told the BBC the Met Police had been carrying out “dawn raids” on Thursday morning, searching for the most violent in the Whitehall protests and violence last week”, about 70% of whom have criminal backgrounds.

“We’ve got criminal damage, violence, weapons offences, football banning orders. These are criminal thugs,” Sir Mark said.

People charged with offences related to rioting have continued to appear in the dock across the country.

This has included appearances at magistrates courts in Hull, Stratford, Westminster, Leeds, Sheffield, and Northampton.

In Liverpool, two rioters have each been jailed for 32 months after taking part in the unrest.

John O’Malley, 43, of Cambridge Gardens in Southport, has been jailed for two years and eight months at Liverpool Crown Court after admitting violent disorder in Southport on Tuesday, July 30.

Disorder in the Merseyside town began after the murder of three young girls in a stabbing attack on Monday, July 29.

A pensioner was meanwhile jailed for his part in disorder in which police were attacked and a library was set on fire in Liverpool.

William Morgan, 69, of Linton Street, Walton, was jailed for two years and eight months at Liverpool Crown Court after admitting violent disorder and possessing an offensive weapon – a cosh – on County Road in Liverpool on Saturday night.

Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC said: “Your advancing years plainly did not prevent you from playing an active part in a disturbance on County Road.”

At least 156 police officers have been injured so far in the unrest with 71 being taken to hospital, the PA news agency understands.

This is the latest known figure of officer injuries from around half of the 43 forces in England and Wales, according to police sources. The total number of officers injured across all forces is not yet known.

Reports that immigration specialist law firms could have been targeted by rioters have meanwhile been condemned by the Law Society of England and Wales.

Its president Nick Emmerson said: “We are continuing to support our members and have been contacting the solicitors’ firms and advice agencies on the target list to ensure they are safe following the planned riots yesterday.”

He added: “These threats against our legal profession were an attack on our democratic values.”

Despite a lull in tensions on Wednesday night, counter-demonstrators made appearances in towns and cities across England.

Large numbers of people gathered in areas including Walthamstow in east London, Bristol, Brighton, Liverpool and Sheffield.

According to Stand Up to Racism, an estimated 25,000 people took to the streets to make a stand – they said – against racism and violence.

Published: 08/08/2024 by Radio NewsHub