Keir Starmer has told police forces to remain on high alert, after a week of violent disorder sparked by the killing of three young girls in Southport 10 days ago.
The prime minister chaired a meeting of police chiefs, ministers and officials on Thursday evening as part of the government’s emergency crisis response – the third since unrest broke out.
Sir Keir said there was “no doubt” rapid sentencing as well as having police in the right places across the country “acted as a deterrent” to prevent the further unrest that had been expected on Wednesday night.
The government remains focused on the police’s response to potential future violence, the BBC understands.
Police had expected more than 100 events on Wednesday night, with 30 counter-demonstrations planned, but most of these did not materialise and those that did were largely peaceful.
Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, one of the UK’s most senior police officers, stressed there was no room for complacency as “many potential events are still being advertised and circulated online”.
Almost 6,000 extra public order officers that were mobilised earlier in the week remain in place.
Tough sentences will continue with maximum publicity, to try to deter future violence, the BBC understands.
On Thursday, judges in Liverpool, Plymouth and Teesside, among other towns and cities, handed down sentences for violent disorder. There were 21 convictions on Thursday alone.
So far, 149 charges have been brought with police expecting the number to “rise significantly” as suspects are fast-tracked to appear in court.
More than 500 people have been arrested, and more than a quarter of those who have been charged are under the age of 21, the latest statistics show.
Among those sentenced so far, include:
- Former postmaster and school governor Steven Mailen, 54, and partner Ryan Sheers, 29, who were each handed a prison sentence of two years and two months
- Kieron Gatenby, 19, was sentenced to 16 months’ in a young offender institution after being part of a group throwing missiles at police and smashing windows while chanting racial slurs
- Pensioner William Nelson Morgan, who is 69, was jailed for his part in unrest in which police were attacked and a library was set on fire in Liverpool
- Two brothers, Adam Wharton, 28, and Ellis Wharton, 22, who looted the library community hub set ablaze by rioters were also jailed
Thousands of anti-racism protesters have also rallied in cities and towns across England – in some cases clashing with groups of the far-right.
In Walthamstow, video emerged online appearing to show a now-suspended Labour councillor telling a crowd that far-right demonstrators needed to have their throats cut.
On Thursday Ricky Jones was arrested on suspicion of encouraging murder.
The spate of violence is the worst the UK has experienced since 2011, when riots between 6 and 11 August across England saw looting and arson, as well as mass deployment of police and the deaths of five people.
