UK riots: Keir Starmer to ‘ramp up’ criminal justice after emergency Cobra

Sir Keir Starmer has promised to “ramp up criminal justice” in response to violent riots across the UK in the wake of the Southport knife attack.

It comes after the Prime Minister convened an emergency Cobra meeting after tensions saw police clash with crowds this weekend.

Escalating violence continued in cities throughout the country in a sixth day of disorder which saw rioters storm hotels, one week on from the fatal stabbing of three children in Southport.

Ministers and police chiefs met in Downing Street today to discuss the response for the coming days and how to prevent further unrest, while courts prepare to take cases.

Sir Keir told broadcasters after the emergency gathering that a “standing army” of specialist police officers would be set up to deal with rioting and unrest.

And he pledged: “We will ramp up criminal justice. There have already been hundreds of arrests, some have appeared in court this morning.

“I have asked for early consideration of the earliest naming and identification of those involved in the process who will feel the full force of the law.”

A Downing Street spokesman confirmed there was “additional court protocol in place to ensure additional court capacity” and “additional security” was being provided to mosques across the country.

He added that there were an extra 70 prosecutors on hand over the weekend to quickly charge criminals.

Starmer also warned against illegal online activity in relation to the riots, stating: “I have been absolutely clear that the criminal law applies online as well as offline.”

He also pledged his government will “make this work”, when asked if there was enough room in prisons to deal with rioters, amid the prisons capacity crisis which he said was being “monitored on a daily basis”.

The Prime Minister spoke out on Sunday, warning perpetrators they would “regret” engaging in “far-right thuggery” and promising they would “face the full force of the law”.

It came as MPs from across the political spectrum demanded the recall of Parliament in the face of rioting on Britain’s streets.

Figures including former Conservative home secretary Dame Priti Patel, Labour MPs including veteran Diane Abbott and Brent MP Dawn Butler, and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage all called for the Commons to cut short its recess.

Cooper told LBC Parliament would not be recalled “right now” but insisted the government was “keeping in close contact with MPs”.

Parliament has only been recalled from recess six times in the past decade, including after Labour MP Jo Cox’s murder in 2016, the Duke of Edinburgh’s death and during Covid.

Starmer has also refuted suggestions of two-tier policing – the claim that police treat different types of protests with differing levels of severity – and insisted: “There is policing without fear or favour – exactly as it should be, exactly what I would expect and require. So that is a non-issue.”