Far-Right Extremism ‘A Real Threat’ Says UK Security Minister
Far-right extremism is a “worrying phenomenon” which poses a “real” threat to UK security, Home Office minister James Brokenshire has claimed.
In a speech, Mr Brokenshire said one in 10 cases referred to a government radicalisation reduction scheme now concerned the far right.
He condemned groups such as the English Defence League (EDL) for “inflaming tensions” with ethnic minorities.
Downing Street has added far-right extremism to its anti-terror strategy.
Speaking to experts at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence in London, the minister for security said that, while not as well structured as Islamic terror groups such as Al Qaeda, the terror threat posed was valid.
‘Same vulnerabilities’
Mr Brokenshire said: “The far-right threat is not as widespread or systematic… and operationally there are vast differences.
“But… at its core the far-right appeals to people who share many of the same vulnerabilities as those exploited by Al Qaeda-inspired extremism. It feeds off the same sense of alienation and questions around identity.
“It has the same ambition to reshape the world in an impossible way. The threat is real, and our response must be effective.”
He added that in 2011, some 17 people were in British prisons for terror offences associated with the far-right movement.
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