Sunak warning after Galloway victory: Democracy is a target

The British PM said ‘in recent weeks and months’ there had been a ‘shocking increase’ in extremist disruption and criminality.

‘That poison is extremism’: Rishi Sunak speaks outside 10 Downing Street on Friday night. Picture: Getty Images

Following weeks of simmering tension in Britain over the Gaza conflict, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said the “time has come” to battle extremist forces as he warned that “democracy itself is a target”.

In an unusual address outside 10 Downing Street, Mr Sunak said at the weekend that “in recent weeks and months, we have seen a shocking increase in extremist disruption and criminality”.

Regular marches protesting Israel’s military response to Hamas’ October 7 attacks have seen dozens arrested for anti-Semitic chanting and banners, inviting support for a proscribed organisation and assaulting emergency workers.

Right-wing conter-­protesters were also arrested when they descended on London for Remembrance Day in November.

“Islamist extremists and far-right groups are spreading a poison. That poison is extremism,” Mr Sunak said.

Matters came to a head last week when House of Commons Speaker Lindsayd Hoyle said he bucked procedure during a debate because of concerns about the safety of MPs.

Mr Sunak said the protests, a regular occurence on Saturdays in the capital, “had descended into intimidation, threats and planned acts of violence … Now our democracy itself is a target. Council meetings and local events have been stormed.

“MPs do not feel safe in their home. Long-standing parliamentary conventions have been upended because of safety concerns,” he added.

The Prime Minister said “police have a tough job in policing the protests” but “we must draw a line … I say this to the police: we will back up when you take action.”

Mr Sunak’s speech came as left-wing firebrand George Galloway was elected to the Commons after tapping into anger over the Israel-Hamas war in a chaotic by-election marred by allegations of anti-Semitism.

Mr Sunak said it was “beyond alarming” that voters had elected a candidate “who dismisses the horror of what happened on Oct­ober 7, and glorifies Hezbollah”.

The government will soon unveil a “new, robust framework” to tackle extremism, which will include backing for the counter-radicalisation Prevent program and a demand for universities to stop extremist activity on campus,

“It is not enough to live side by side, we must live together, united by shared values and a shared commitment to this country,” he said. “The time has now come for us all to stand together to combat the forces of division.”

Mr Galloway, 69, first became an MP in 1987 and will return to the Commons for the first time since 2015 after winning the seat of Rochdale, near Manchester, by nearly 6000 votes.

During the campaign, Labour withdraw its candidate, Azhar Ali, after he touted a conspiracy ­theory that Israel had allowed Hamas to carry out its deadly attack on October 7.

Mr Galloway, long accused by critics of stoking community tensions, put the Gaza conflict front and centre of his campaign in Rochdale, which has a 30 per cent Muslim population.

“Keir Starmer, this is for Gaza,” Mr Galloway, leader of the fringe Workers Party of Great Britain, said in his victory speech, referring to Labour’s leader.

“You have paid, and you will pay, a high price for the role that you have played in enabling, encouraging and covering for the catastrophe presently going on in occupied Palestine in the Gaza Strip,” he added.

Sir Keir has been reluctant to criticise Israel and only recently backed calls for a Gaza ceasefire.

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