LONDON: The UK's approach to countering extremism has been criticized for being “two-tiered”, with far-right attacks not being taken as seriously as Islamist attacks, according to a leading think tank.
The Royal United Services Institute has raised concerns that right-wing violence is often dismissed as “mere violence” by politicians, prosecutors and security services, The Observer reported on Sunday.
In contrast, similar acts by Islamist extremists would likely be quickly classified as terrorism, the think tank argued in an article published by the newspaper.
The criticism comes in the wake of weeks of unrest in England and Northern Ireland, during which asylum hotels and mosques have been targeted.
The violence was linked to neo-Nazi and far-right activity, highlighting what RUSI described as a “double standard” in how various forms of extremism are tackled.
RUSI, which was founded in 1831 by the Duke of Wellington and is often cited as the world's oldest think tank, said this double standard allowed far-right extremism to flourish in the UK.
Dr. Jessica White, Acting Director of RUSI's Terrorism and Conflict Research Group, Research Fellow Claudia Wallner and Emily Winterbotham, Director of Terrorism and Conflict Studies, co-authored the paper.
They wrote: “RUSI research suggests that the nature of far-right violence, which is often perceived as low-impact and disparate, together with institutional bias and racism, means that far-right violence has historically not elicited the same responses from politicians, security services and the media as jihadist violent extremism .
“There is a clear double standard or two-tiered approach to how different forms of extremism are addressed, particularly when comparing security and legal responses to far-right and Islamist violent extremism.
“Violence motivated by the far right is often classified as mere 'thuggery' or hooliganism, while similar acts motivated by Islamist extremism would likely be quickly labeled terrorism. This inconsistency undermines the perceived seriousness of far-right threats and prevents the political will and necessary legal precedent to take equivalent action.
The article criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for his recent description of an attack on a hotel housing asylum seekers as “far-right thugs”, The Observer reported.
While the authors acknowledged the ideological roots of the violence, they argued that the term “violent” minimized the organized ideological nature of the riots and the groups behind them.
RUSI has pushed for serious cases of far-right violence to be considered terrorism. Recognizing serious cases of far-right violence as terrorism “would be consistent with a fairer legal strategy to ensure that all forms of extremism are prosecuted with the seriousness they warrant,” he said.
It argued that the recent unrest should be seen as part of a wider “pattern of violence” across Europe that has been largely overlooked by both politicians and the public.
He added: “Similar far-right riots occurred in Dublin in 2023 and in Chemnitz, Germany in 2018, both in response to a stabbing that sparked widespread anti-immigration sentiment, with far-right groups exploiting the incidents to incite violence against migrants and refugees.”
RUSI's findings follow recent allegations of bias within the UK legal and political system, particularly in the context of the pro-Palestinian protests that have been ongoing since 7 October.
