Referrals to the government’s anti-extremism programme for “extreme right-wing views” in the South West of England rose by 69 per cent – overtaking Islamic extremism.
A favourite destination for holidaymakers, with its picturesque countryside, forests, and beaches, the most ethnically-white region in England saw the rise in “right-wing extremism” go up from 75 in 2015/16 to 127 in 2016/17, reports DevonLive.
Those who were referred for right-wing extremism (15 per cent) were six times more likely to receive support through the programme, which supports people at risk of engaging in terrorism, compared to those referred for Islamic extremism (two per cent).
The majority, 56 per cent, of those referred in the region to Prevent in 2016/17 were aged under 20, including 107 under-15s. The majority, 87 per cent, were male.
Police will then screen the Prevent Strategy referrals and pass on to the Channel programme for “mentoring” those which are deemed terror- or extremism-related.
Last year’s Channel panels in the South West focussing on right-wing extremism accounted for the majority of the 49 cases at 27 – a 108 per cent rise from the year before.
Of the 24 people who received Channel support, 19 were for right-wing extremism and 4 for Islamic extremism.
Across England and Wales, referrals for right-wing extremism grew by 28 per cent, from 759 in 2015/16 to 968 against a total of 6,093 referrals for 2016/17.
Last year, Breitbart London reported that despite the vast majority of violent extremists and terrorists being Islamic fundamentalists, some regions have seen significant increases in referrals for right-wing views.
In Yorkshire, “far-right” referrals accounted for nearly 50 per cent of the caseload and 30 per cent of the caseload in the East Midlands.
In some cases, children have been referred to Prevent for campaigning for UKIP and for opposing the wearing of Islamic veils in British society.
This shift in focus comes after anti-Prevent campaigns by Islamic fundamentalists, Muslim groups, unions, and senior Labour politicians argued it unfairly targets Muslims and is “racist”.
The figures revealed from the South West comes after details emerged that the jailed Parsons Green Tube bomber Hassan Ahmed, who was found guilty last week of causing an explosion and attempted murder, refused to engage in the deradicalisation programme.
The teen Iraqi asylum seeker was reported to Prevent by his teacher Kayte Cable last year after she saw a WhatsApp message on his mobile phone saying, “IS [Islamic State] has accepted your donation” and for comments made at his immigration meeting where he said that he had been “trained to kill” by the terror group.
Though authorities did not need his consent to enrol him as he was under 18 at the time and in care, Ms. Cable told the BBC that he had not agreed to take part and was not properly engaged in the scheme.